Enjoying the fall weather

My Little Packer

Thanks Nicole for the outfit. Hopefully it keeps bringing good luck to the Pack!

Halloween

Cereal?

Since Brett was trying to eat his whole hand we figured he wanted a little more.

The anticipation of what is about to come his way.

A couple of days ago we decided we were going to try cereal with Brett.  When we told Drew that we were going to give Brett cereal, he looked at us with that silly little look he gets and told us, "Brett can't have cereal he's just a baby." We then had to explain to him what type of cereal he would be getting. 

I thought for sure that he would spit it out and not be a fan of the cereal, but I think he enjoyed it. 

Once he got the hang of it, he would get upset if we weren't putting the cereal in his mouth fast enough.  We gave him cereal two days in a row, and then he got a bad tummy ache. It could just be a coincidence, but I am going to give him a little bit and then try it again. I think he really enjoyed it, but his stomach wasn't quit ready for it.

Drew wanted to look like Brett while he was eating so he made just as much of a mess with his spaghetti as Brett did with his cereal.

We miss hearing from you!

I just want to remind all of you who enjoy looking at our blog that we miss hearing from you.  I miss getting the emails back from everyone when I used to send out pics of the boys.  I stopped sending out the emails so I wouldn't swamp your inbox with photos, but I am starting to regret it. It was a great way to get quick updates on everyone. So please leave us comments on the blog if you'd like to.  All you have to do is click on comments link on the bottom of each post and send us a note.  

Swim time

Drew has no fear of the water, so I decided it would be a good idea to get him into lessons before we had an accident on our hands.  As soon as he sees water or a pool he wants to be in it.

Drew had a great class; there were only 2 other kids in class with him. The teachers were wonderful.  Each of them took the time they needed with the kids. They each had there own personalities which made it fun to watch each week.

Drew wears a float belt and also "muscles" as they call them in class.  He wasn't always willing to keep his "muscles" on when supposed to, because they wouldn't stay up where he wanted them to.

As you can see, the "muscles" came off and he tried to convince his teacher that he could swim without them.

The boys looked forward to this each week. They would all swim down to the deep end and then jump in.  Each time they were about to jump they would yell "Mom!" to make sure that we were watching.

The busy one

Besides Drew being in preschool this year we signed him up for swim lessons and gymnastics class.  Ever since the Olympics he was constantly tumbling and trying to do all sorts of acrobatic moves.  Jay and I decided that we would sign him up for Gymini-cricket at the Y and see how he did. He was so excited that he was going to be in gymnastics and couldn't wait for it to begin.  At his first class he wanted to do everything by himself. I will remind you that he has no fear.  If wants to do it, watch out!  He sometimes has a hard time staying in line because he wants to be first, or go on to something else. The teachers were great with him.  When he wouldn't listen or go out of place he would either lose a turn or get a time out. Of course Drew was there a couple of times.

Notice how he is trying to pout because he had to sit out a turn.  We've seen his "attitude" a lot recently.

He loved to go on the big trampoline.  I don't think he ever really did what he was supposed to when on it, but he loved it!  

Getting ready to tumble onto the big mat....another favorite.

He loves to do the balance beam. Any opportunity he has to walk on a wall or small path he will do it.

Nature Walk

Last weekend the boys and I took advantage of the beautiful weather and went exploring. We were originally just going to play at a park, but I wanted to get some good exercise in.  We headed to Hixon Forest which we had never been to before.  I strapped Brett on the front-pack and away we went. The first thing both boys had to do before we could begin was get a walking stick. I just had to remind them they were for walking and not to be used as swords.

 I let Drew choose what path he wanted to take first. Of course he chose the most difficult one. I had to finally convince him that we needed to turn around because it just kept getting steeper and steeper.  I was fine going up, but I was nervous going down with Brett attached to me. Everyone knows how clumsy I am! Once I convinced him to turn around we went on the medium path.  That one was a lot better; it wasn't quit as challenging, but not too easy. The boys and I had a blast looking for bugs and animals.  Reed loved it that we were next to the golf course he and his Baba had golfed at and he told me all about it and what hole we were by. They both took turns taking pictures with the camera.  

I am going to miss these warm fall days once winter comes. The bluffs were beautiful; I could have stayed out there all day and walked around and taken pictures, but of course Brett had different plans for us.

We ended the day with the boys favorite dinner time treat.  Subway down by the river.

Watch out quarterbacks here comes Reed!

Drew, Alan (Reed's best friend from school) and Reed

Flag football has been a blast for Reed. Jay and Reed are constantly playing catch outside.  Reed always wants Jay to go deep when he is throwing to Jay and vise versa.  Reed used to be afraid of the ball and wasn't willing to catch it with his hands, but boy has he improved.  At his last game of the season, they played a "real game" where they were able to kick off and score extra points after a touchdown.  He loved it! 

He was the quarterback, which is his favorite position. He has a great arm and is also very good about looking for the open man or just running with it if no one is open. If he is not playing quarterback he likes to be the wide receiver.  

On the opening kick off of his game, Reed ran it back for a touchdown.  If you ask him he can describe every move that he made.  He also scored another touchdown later in the game as well. He was so proud of what he had accomplished over season.  He is trying to convince us to let him do tackle football next year, but I am not sure if he is ready for that. He has a lot of toughening up to do.

Olympics 2012

Reed amazes us in each sport that he chooses to play.  When he puts his mind to it, he sets out to be the best player on the field, on the court, on the course, and now in the pool.  As many of you know from previous posts that Reed played baseball and tennis over the summer and excelled at each of them. Once baseball was done he wanted to know what was next.....so we signed Reed up for swimming and flag football.  Reed had never been in an organized swim class before, but has always loved to swim.  He took up lessons at the Y and loves them. Am I surprised? No. 

 He asked if he could have swimming every night and not just once a week? I think maybe next year he will do the swim team at the Y.  Once he was shown all the techniques he worked hard and mastered each of them; the only thing he needs to work on is keeping his face in the water. Other than that, he does great!

 

We are all so proud of you, keep all the hard work!

The magic purple bear

Drew received this bear as a gift when he was a baby and loved it. Whenever he was fussy and wouldn't fall asleep we would give him the bear and he would calm down and fall asleep.

As you have all read before Brett hasn't been taking a lot of good naps. I came across the purple bear and figured I would give it a try.  Well it worked!  He is now taking longer naps and more willing to fall asleep during the day.  I love it that they both love to put it over their face. It is so adorable.  Once he is asleep I pull it off his face so he can breath, so don't worry.Now I just need to keep track of the time and start putting him in bed at nap time instead of the floor or couch.

A wonderful time

My parents left on Tuesday after being here for two weeks. It was wonderful to have them around and helping out with the kids.  My parents normally only stay for a week when they come, but decided that always goes by way too fast so they stayed for two this time and it was still too fast. 

The boys loved having them around. Reed went golfing with my dad 3 times and they were both able to try out their new clubs.  Reed got a lot of pointers from Baba about his golf swing.  Reed is a better golfer then I will ever be. He scored at 84 on 18. I think that would be my score on 9. I am so proud of all his athletic ability.  

Reed also did art with my mom and used all the art supplies that they had gotten him for Christmas last year.  He made some great pictures.

Drew loved having Baba and Barbie around everyday.  That was the first thing he would ask in the morning when he got up.  Where is Baba and Barbie? Can I yell for them mom?  He would wait and eat his breakfast until Baba got here and then they would have the "Boys Club" breakfast. They were so silly together.  

My dad took Drew to the McDonalds play land for 2 hours while my mom and I did some shopping together.  My mom and I also took Drew down to the river to walk and to see all the boats.

Now Brett was spoiled.  He was held all the time and was getting constant attention. I thought for sure he was going to be screaming at me after they left since I wasn't holding him all the time, but he adjusted quit well.  

We took advantage of the wonderful weather that we had while they were here and went for a walk on the La Crosse river trail. All the boys had a blast looking for golf balls along the trail. I think they found about 20.

All of us loved having Baba and Barbie here and can't wait to see them again. I am not sure if we are going to be able to wait until next June....