Sunday at home

Eli snuggled under my blanket and watched tv on the couch while Cole napped.

Brotherly love - clothing optional.

We had our friends Kara & Brian over with their little ones for a cookout. Don't you love this toddler dinner party?!

Wet weekend at the farm

So my solo trip to the farm went pretty well. The boys were for-the-most-part well behaved. I picked them up from school Friday after lunch, right at nap time. I thought I was being smart and that they'd sleep some of the way down. Well, they only slept about 30 minutes but they were pretty good travelers so it was ok. 4 potty stops and 3-1/2 hours later, we arrived at Grandma's house.

We spent quite a bit of time outside when we got there, which turned out to be great since it rained all day Saturday. Eli and Cole both loved finding and throwing rocks, looking at the animals, swinging on the porch swing with Grandpa and playing with outside toys. Cole was interested in the chickens so Grandpa tried to take him to the coop but THEN a cow "moo"d at him quite loud and Cole was no longer interested in the chickens. He was upset by the cow talking to him. We grilled out for dinner, the boys ate ok and then we hung out. Thankfully I was able to get them down to bed easily - both asleep by 8:45pm - and then I put myself to bed with Cole. I slept with Cole worried that he'd roll out of bed and Eli slept by himself.

About 3:15am, Eli came into the room and climbed in bed with me & Cole. I sooooo wish I would have had a picture. I was snuggled in between my two sweet boys for the next few hours. Priceless. When we got up, we heard the rain. It ended up raining all day so we headed out early to Monkey Joe's - or the Jumpy Jump place as my Dad calls it. My parents had never been so it was a treat for them and the boys. Eli & Cole played for over an hour and wore themselves out. Cole loved going on the big slide, carried of course by Mommy or Grandma. Lunch at Chick-Fil-A and then we headed back to the farm for naps. Naps on a rainy day - perfect! And the boys actually took great naps. Eli & I two hours, Cole three hours!

Some more play time and then we packed up the truck to head to my Grandparents' house before heading back home. It was great to see my Grandparents and they loved seeing the boys and how much they've grown. After dinner, we hit the road with 'Cars' on the dvd player. Thankfully Lightning McQueen helped me on the drive because it rained the ENTIRE way home. I was bug eyed trying to keep my eye on the road and all the other drivers. Eventually both boys fell asleep and transitioned from their car seats to bed easily.

It was a quick trip but went well and it was great to see my family. Oh yeah, we fit in a pit stop at Uncle Billy's work to say hi to him. Wish we could have seen everyone but it's so hard to do. Tim got a lot of "to-do" stuff accomplished at home and was able to enjoy a bit of quiet. Now we're all back together and crazy!

We started with a quick nap for Cole

and Eli.

Then we proceeded to the boys trying to make each other laugh

and then finding themselves giggling uncontrollably. It was hilarious!

Checking things out with Grandma.

Love this picture - Grandpa and his boys.

Checking on the chickens.

Love this one too - I love how they're looking at each other. My Dad loves being Grandpa!

Emergency rescue - the army men rescued the squirrel.

Big boy!

Swinging with Grandpa

Grandma & Eli played a version of paddle ball in the house.

Cole gave it a try.

Eli loved doing it. Kept him busy for a while.

One of my first (of a million) trips up the ladder with Cole. I definitely got a work out!

Grandma through the obstacle course with Cole.

Eli did great climbing up everything.

Up the ladder to the big slide.

Mommy & Eli self portrait at the top.

We had fun going up together. Cole thought he was just as big as Eli.

Grandma had fun too!

Eli was all over the place sliding down.

He had a blast!

We also had fun coming down, all three of us together.

Can you tell they were tired? They were very huggy and clingy to Mommy.

At Chick-Fil-A, Cole enjoyed feeding me his ice cream. Of course, I didn't mind!

Cute face!

The boys with their Great Grandma

and with their Great Grandpa.

Grandma loves her boys to pieces.

Another cute face - I can't resist!!

My Grandmother.

Love my Paw-Paw.

Cole gave it up before Eli on the way home. His "pose" cracked me up.

Off to Grandma's House

The boys' bags are packed - love having their own bags. We're heading out for a little fun time at the farm. Leaving Daddy at home to do some chores. Wish me luck traveling alone!

Cheering for Kara

This morning we loaded up and headed out to cheer our friend Kara who was running her first marathon. We had so much fun cheering for all the runners and really turned it on when we saw her. Eli & Cole did great clapping and cheering - and they were amazingly well behaved. It was such a wonderful event and we were so happy to watch our friend ROCK IT OUT!

Eli jumped in Cole's car seat so Cole had to ride in Eli's. We kept laughing at him b/c it looked like he was holding on for dear life.

We got to our spot early and it was perfect. The boys were able to run on the trail a bit before runners started coming through.

future marathoner?

the gang, signs in hand

There she is!

Cheering is hard work - Cole had to refuel before we saw Kara again.

The only picture with me in it! My sweet boy.

Eli refueled on goldfish.

He kept practicing his name in the sand with sticks. I think he's doing pretty good, don't you?

Playdate and the Park

This morning we had a great playdate with Eli's buddy Evan while Tim played paintball with some folks from my work. We played at Evan's house for a while and then walked to a nearby park. Cole loved hanging with the big boys. At the park, we fed the geese - well, we also fed the little boys. Eli & Evan decided to EAT the bread instead of giving it to the geese and ducks. Then we ran around the soccer field, kicking the ball and running and, oh yeah, pausing for a snack.

Walking to the park

Such great buds

Oh my, the cuteness!

Eli the goose - eating bread

I have no idea what Evan said to Eli but this picture cracks me up.

Three amigos

Big boy Cole - he loved running around with the soccer ball.

Snack time

I still can't believe how this happened - Eli is so big!

Serious snacking

On the walk back to Evan's house, Eli said his legs were tired so he hitched a ride with Cole on the stroller.

I tried to get a picture of Cole's hair blowing. He wanted his window down but kept trying to fall asleep and the wind was blowing his hair everywhere.