Park Fun in January???

The boys and I took advantage of the sun this afternoon and headed out to Sugarcreek to play.  Our mission was Winklepleck, but got there and it was closed, so we headed over to Cherry Ridge.  One park that my boys know all too well, b/c Papa & Grandma Shroyer live right up from it, and they love to visit that park during the warmer months.....so, I thought it would be perfect for a picnic and some play time today, as well! They had a ball and yes, before we left I let them get in the creek!  Had to do this last, b/c I knew they'd want to get wet and it is January, so we would have to head right to the car.....and that's what we did!  They had a ball this afternoon and got to let off some steam....

Sappy Morning =)

Woke up this morning feeling very blessed, and sort of sappy for some reason?  We live close to a school and we watch the buses and the kids walking to school, and it just has me thinking that very soon we'll be doing the very same thing w/ Ethan....watching him "go to school" (and I think that's the culprit for my sappy feeling)!!!  As I started to think back, it just seemed like yesterday, we brought him home!!!  I'm very grateful for the time I've got to spend w/ our boys and only working part-time, has enabled me to watch them grow, not miss a doctor's appointment, and simply be here to have PJ days during the week (like today).... I have a gem of a husband and thank God for him everyday!!!  I smile w/ gratitude watching our boys play....thankful that the good Lord blessed us w/ them!  They are happy, loving, handsome, healthy, different, and just a joy!!!  So, I grabbed the camera and started snapping pictures of them again.  It's been awhile since I've heard "No more pictures, Mommy"!!!  LOL  Anyway, had to share a couple pics from our morning......



Mr. Donut Face

loves his "new to him" DS

(thanks to his cousin Bryce)

What to do?!?!?!

Today was a pretty eventful day, starting with church and then our nephew's 8th bday party!!! While at church, Colin, made it loud and clear that he doesn't care for that building one bit!  I mean he hates it and gets himself all worked up to the point of having to leave the building!  Today, was my turn to be w/ him (we've decided to take turns each Sunday, so we can both get into the service once and awhile) and wow, he was a mess!!!! Finally, I decided after sitting in Volunteer Central for about a half hour and him still not calming down, that I had to get him out of the building.....so, I grabbed his coat and took him to the entry and put his coat on there.  Once he got outside, the tears and screaming stopped!  Wow, I'm not sure what we are going to do w/ him....this has been a month of this and he starts, as soon as, we pull up the road! I was hoping that the more we do this the easier it would be (and I still have hope it does) but right now, sure makes for a trying time....LOL  I guess we'll have to maybe do online service w/ him for awhile and then one of us can take Ethan, b/c Ethan, absolutely loves church and learning about God and he deserves to do that.  Anyway, as I was sitting in the car w/ my lil guy and we were talking, all I could do was smile b/c he's definitely teaching me a thing or two about life =)

I'm a happy boy now.....

sure love a birthday party & all the sweets

watching his cousin open presents

bed bug w/ sound!!!

This little guy was, I thought, sound asleep in his own bed......I'm laying in bed watching TV and I hear little pitter patters across the floor, then I hear all sorts of sounds coming from a truck, all while Brenton is trying to get Ethan to sleep.  Next thing I know, this little guy is in bed with me (truck going w/ sounds to boot) and all I could do was smile and make room for my little buddy and his truck!!!!  =)

Hello 2012!!!!

     Hard to believe that 2011 is over and 2012, is now reality.....Trying to think back upon the last year and like every new year, I find myself saying "that went really fast"!!!  As I try to make each year meaningful and memorable for our family, I find myself thinking "man, what did we do w/ that time?" Thank heavens for my scrapbooks, pictures, and this blog, b/c I look back on last year and these things quickly remind me that we did have a great year!!!  There were moments of hurt, happiness, sadness, excitement, etc and with each year all those emotions will still find there way back, but we welcome 2012 with open arms and new resolutions w/ no fear!!! LOL  Anyway, for the most part, 2011 was a great year =) 

     As we were pondering what to do to ring in the New Year, b/c we are not party people, my sister-in-law came to our rescue.....Saturday morning we headed down to Columbus to celebrate w/ them.....It was a fun night filled with tons of food, Twister, Wii, Dsi, adult beverages, kids screaming, and Ryan Seacrest.....would you believe, we all made it to about 11:30....really, a half hour or so till the ball dropped and we were out.....well, Kayla, our niece, was the only one that stayed up and got to see Lady Gaga perform, but from what I hear, we didn't miss anything...LOL  Anyway, it was a fun night and the exact way we like to do things, low-key w/ enough food to get fat on.....Happy New Year to you all, hope you had a great time celebrating, as well!!!!

Twister Fun (Aunt Angie, Kayla, and Ethan) ☺

Kayla & Dylan getting the Wii fun started

Ethan & Kayla doing it "Just Dance" style

they were buddies all night...Dylan & Ethan

Brenton chillaxin

 guess what he's getting for his birthday?!?!

A long night of fun = tired boy on New Years Day