The Other One Talks, Too

Okay, so I've been meaning to post a couple things that Sam has said recently. He's starting to put more words together and it's funny how his little mind works.

Lately we've been talking a lot about where people live. He knows that some of our family lives in "Ankey, Iowa", some in "Altoona, Iowa", others in "Tadinda, Iowa", and so forth. So today at Wal-Mart we saw a large inflatable Santa Claus. Our conversation went something like this:

Sam (excitedly pointing to Santa): "Look, Mommy, Santa!"

Me: "Yeah! Good job, Buddy!" (I was so proud because he'd never called him by name, and last year he was very afraid of him.)

Sam: "Where Santa live, Mommy?"

Me: "The North Pole."

Sam: "North Pole, Iowa."



And one more ...
The other night we were saying prayers. We usually just "God Bless" everyone and call it a night. But we've started doing the sign of the cross now. So I say "In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen." A couple nights ago, Sam surprised me by saying it all by himself.

His version: "Father, Son, Holy Shoulder. Amen."

"Happy Thanksgiving"

Here's a quick video of Jake "talking" a couple days ago. I'm sure he's saying "Happy Thanksgiving." :)

(We are amazed at how much he talks, since Sam did not babble very much at all! Although you're not supposed to compare your kids, it's amazing how different they can be!)

We're At It Again ...

Most of you know that we spent almost two straight years demolishing and remodeling our home. Yes, TWO STRAIGHT YEARS. It consumed every spare moment we had. We tore out each and every piece of plaster, re-wired all the rooms, installed insulation, hung drywall, laid tile, etc., etc. Here are some pictures (they are at least 3 years old so some of the rooms have changed again, such as the kids' rooms), but it gives a little glimpse of what we did. These are just a few of the gazillion pictures we have ... and they're a few years old so most are missing furniture, etc., but you get the idea!

And now we are doing the same to the basement. Why, oh why, do we do this to ourselves?? Although the basement is going to be small potatoes compared to the rest of the house ... and we're not doing much drywall or anything too complicated so hopefully it won't take too long ... but now we have two kids ... hmmm ... we might be done in a few years! :)

Kitchen/Dining Room Before (we knocked out the wall in-between)


Kitchen/Dining Room Mid-Job


Kitchen/Dining Room After


Kitchen/Dining Room 2 Before


Kitchen/Dining Room 2 After


Kitchen/Dining Room 3 Before


Kitchen/Dining Room 3 After


Kitchen/Dining Room 4 Before


Kitchen/Dining Room 4 After


Dining Room Before


Dining Room After


Hall Bathroom Before


Hall Bathroom After



Hall Bathroom Before


Hall Bathroom After


Office Before


Office *Almost* After


Office Before


Office After


Guest Room Before


Guest Room After (now Jake's room so different from this pic)


Guest Room Before


Guest Room After


Fireplace Before


Fireplace *Almost* After


Bedroom Walkout Before


Bedroom Walkout After


Master Bathroom Before


Master Bathroom After

Three Months Old!

I can't believe how fast time has flown with Jake! He turned three months old today. It seems we were able to savor Sam's little moments a bit more than we can with Jake. (Funny how you lose track of time when you have two of them!!) He's growing so fast -- too fast. Here is a video taken today in which he's almost rolling from back to front! I'm excited to see all his changes, yet it makes me a little sad that he's getting so big so quick.

"Two Boys"

A couple more of our "two boys" ...

Kid Cuisine

How many two-year-olds would rather eat shrimp than chicken nuggets? Check out his plate of nuggets, and look what he's reaching for instead. Shrimp is probably his favorite food, followed closely by eggs or tenderloins.

And the second picture is him eating "green eggs" for breakfast. We've been reading "Green Eggs and Ham" (featuring, of course, Sam-I-Am!).

Our Neighbor: Part II

As promised, here's a better video of his yard on Halloween:

The Pirate and the Bumble Bee

Here are some shots from trick-or-treating last Friday here in town. It was such a beautiful night! We were lucky and got to do it two nights in a row -- and both were terrific so we had to take advantage of them! :) At first Sam was apprehensive about going up to people's doors, but that shortly wore off. By the end of the night, he was walking up to doors and knocking on them all by himself (see videos at the end of this post). Such a big boy! He also found a "titty-tat" that he loved. He kept wanting to "touch it, touch it" but we weren't sure where it came from. The cat starting following us for a little while, and Sam loved that, too.

Welcome To Our House

Just a quick glimpse of what happens at our house ...

"Uh Oh, Mickey"

Last week, I was cleaning upstairs and Sam was 'helping' me. He disappeared for awhile but apparently I was too busy to notice how long he'd been gone. Once I realized he was being too quiet for too long, I discovered him in the bathroom. Upon my asking what he was doing, he replied, "Uh oh, Mickey." He had squirted the entire bottle of his brand-new Mickey Mouse bubble bath into the tub. It was fun while it lasted, albeit not very long!