September 2016

Jake - 

Loves the mix, belly laughs at kids, His first word is woof woof and it is the most adorable thing because he pushes his lips out and has the most serious face when he does the woof woof - calls dogs woof woof, He is a weird eater man - he chews food and then gets more interested in another piece of food on his tray so then he spits it all out and goes for the other food and doesn’t swallow much. zerbits on belly, cah cah cah - come on is his chant and even the other kids say it and jeff will say cah cah cah and the kids will yell come on then jeff says cah cah cah, crawling regular now but did army crawl first for 3 months, crawls into pantry and pulls cereal down to eat it, obsessed with playing with any balls, likes to play and crawl with scout, says momma dadda and woof woof, obsessed with reading books but he likes to turn the pages the best, when jeff comes home he power crawls to jeff shouting dada, loves when jeff gets his “finggies” which means pretend biting them - really gumming his fingers and he belly laughs, kids want to crawl into his crib every morning and jake doesn’t like it he wants just momma to get him out of his crib, he is the biggest cuddler when you hug him on your shoulder he rests his head on your shoulder and hugs back, he will  usually go to any adult and hug them and put his head down on their shoulder, Lydia and Luke love picking jake up and trying to carry him but Jake usually gets sick of it quickly, jake is an extremely happy and easy baby, he had strep a few weeks ago but was still a trooper and recovered quickly, Jake loves playing with tags in between his fingers when he is tired especially the ones on his wubanubs, when he is super tired and wants to go to bed he lays on my shoulder and makes a hmmmm hmmm sound and i make it back and he copies me and we do this over and over until he is ready for his crib, when daddy puts you to sleep he whispers in your ear “i love you so very much, get a good sleepy, see you in the morning”, RIDING THE BULL is the cutest thing - Jeff holds him on his hip and Jeff puts his hand up and then Jake puts his up like he is riding a bull and they bounce up and down and jake laughs and loves it, he destroys all his shirts by being the messiest eater

Drew - 

Lieutenant Frank Drebin, good bad and the best mooth kiss, lots of beebee, bee bee net en yahoos, huggies and booboots  - which is hugs and back pats, loves to say excuse me for the burp or toot - thinks it is so funny, loves to play with Luke’s friends, Loves his Henrys - Henry beck and ketcham, drewman nettles, wants to go to school everyday instead of only 3 days, very social and super polite saying please and thank you so loud and adorable voice unprompted, he over exaggerated smile with big teeth and squinty eyes, he still likes to sleep in his crib but he can crawl in and out of it, loves sleeping in room with Luke, He asked for funny things for his birthday: golf room, movie theater, swords to hit luke with, slippers, robe, sleeping bag, in a really good happy stage right now just turned 3, in the balloon room at school, all potty trained and never has accidents - he is so proud of himself going poopoo and wants everyone to see it, loves to play all sports and wants to wear soccer spikes to luke’s soccer practices, loves tennis and watching it on the couch with daddy, hates mooth kiss, foobon, likes to eat everything bagels, carrots and ranch, pirate booty, smoothies, popsicles, likes to dress himself and needs to pick it out himself, loves reading at night with daddy, working on learning his abc and numbers, LOVES the farm and swinging, loves bounce house and loved swimming with floaties and jumping in and playing categories this summer at shaw and farm, loved paw patrol in spring and winter of 2016 but now like mickey mouse club and lion guard, his front teeth have cute space in between them and are crooked from beebees, fights and wrestles with Luke from morning to night, extremely smart and loving, loves “skateboard” song which is if that skateboard wheel falls off mommas gonna buy you an elephant, if that elephant runs away mommas gonna buy you a new bee bee. starting to learn prayers at dinner and bedtime

Luke -  

scared to poop because it hurt one time so we have to force him to sit on the toilet and go. Jeff is the only one that can make him go - sometimes it is 4/5 days without going, he says - is eet gonna hooort (hurt), Rules dookey, super into routine and gets mad if something is done outside of normal routine and wants to go back and do it over - like if I’m not in my bed when he wakes up he throws a fit and pulls me back into my bed then we can get up, if he doesn’t get enough sleep he is crazy exhausted and loses it at the end of the day, he refuses naps but sometimes is tired enough to fall asleep in my bed or on jeff, Loves soccer and likes defense - smiling the whole time he is on the field. loves hanging out with his buddies and can’t keep his hands off his brothers and friends because he loves them so much, gets in trouble for making a fist and pushing on jake’s fingers or crawling with him and getting on top of him softly but he says i just love him so much! and he does - he just can’t keep his hands off of him even when he tries, in the superstar room and ms amy is his teacher, loves hanging out with billy diehr and they play so well together. is still shy and quieter around people and teachers but is getting better at talking to others and saying thank you loud, doesn’t want to say sorry and when he does says it mean usually. Luke is obsessed with building and drawing!!! he loves drawing treasure maps and coloring in small area coloring books, he is very talented. obsessed with difficult puzzles and is super organized with all his toys. Loves to build forts and play bball and is learning to ride his bike too now! He is really showing interest now in reading and sounding out words! Wants to learn how to tie shoes too, extremely smart and loving, likes to push the limits and likes to do everything lydia does, loves pork chops, turkey, cheese sticks, cheese itz, Starting to talk back with attitude, loves one boy song at night and scratching his back, says goodnight love you and wants us to repeat it every night as we close the door. Learning to do the sign of the cross and doing well at prayers

Lydia - 

Cuppie, cake of cup, lost her front tooth and has a lisp and looks adorable! Obsessed with singing, music, excited for piano lessons and practicing, first grade spelling and reading words are beyond easy for her and i am having to figure out how to challenge her with other work. she is extremely motherly, nurturing but with that comes bossing boys a little but always for the good! she reads so very well - at least a 2nd grade level maybe even 3rd grade. she is starting to help by bringing dishes over and making her bed. She usually listens really well but she can talk back about everything and thinks she knows it all already. she is very talented at soccer and her competitive nature makes her want to be in the game all the time. She has many playdates and love doing lemonade stands. She is very independent and showers herself and puts her hair up herself. she likes me to help her get dressed for school in the morning because she is so tired, she loves bringing her purse everywhere. she likes wearing makeup and stick on earrings. She loves walking to and from school with Luka, Abbey, and Isabella. At night we cuddle in her bed and she reads a page then I read a page and so on. She is always loving hugging and kissing on daddy and mommy. She asks the most interesting and advance questions - always. She is very good, competitive and kind at soccer. She is extremely loving toward God and Jesus and is always praying and talking about Jesus and His lessons. She loves buying lunch at school and her favorite meal is breakfast for lunch. She really wants mommy to go to every field trip and be at every school volunteer opportunity. She radiates everything wonderful that could be!

Nicknames (per 5/6/16)

Lesley - - Mine, cookie, threepy, go deet, bite you gut it, cute,
cookie-fied cut, bitty gut it, chief runs into walls

Lydia - - Beeboo, bookenz, shah-doosh, quo-dee, meb keflezghi,
cupcake, cuppie, me bow-key, one cuppie, cutes, sweets

Luke - - Hoondsum, duckey, sugar-filled, mankeeto tickle pits,
aza-dookie, biggest oldest boy, gooey

Drew - - Drewman, nettles, foobahn, quesdadore, middle sized guy,
mooth-keese, toon-stenz, huggy head

Jake - - Phalfadore, val viv vevoe, meex, jakey yeah

February 2016

Drew –
Drew talking so cute with sentences - binki fairy story (calls it bee bee), best buddy forever, Mouth (mooth) kiss (keese). Says bad mom and laughs, loves his navy rain boots but takes shoes off all the time and loves running naked and barefoot everywhere including the park( not naked there though) his little hair colic made horns on his forehead. Speaks above normal with his words!!! Asks mommy to sing one boy and rock me and loves to read Elmo potty book before bed. Loves trains and train table. Super silly boy.

Luke –

Cast doesn't want to tell anyone story. Wants to hide it under his shirt really good about it though- like it’s not even on anymore, excited when person of the day. He goes from bashful, to rough, to sweet. Really good with Henry Beck and Jake. Takes care of them like he is their big brother. Obsessed with coloring and painting. Still doesn't want us to say are you ok after he falls or gets hurt. He hits me and gets pissed if I do so I just ignore when he falls. He acts embarrassed. They all believe (Drew & Lydia too) that the elf and Santa talk to me and adults are the only ones that can hear them. They all say I love you and have a good day at school and hug and kiss before they leave for school.

Lydi-
Miss independent but sassy because of it. Loves school but says it's too long. Loves her Principal miss Gearon and has a great joking relationship with her and calls her crabby. Was great at soccer this fall. Aggressive and fast, she scored the most goals on the team. She is doing dance once a week but doesn't love it. The reason she wants to do it is because she really can't wait to wear makeup and her costume in may and be on stage. She loves to sing getting to know you and beauty and the beast song with me. It's adorable and she has a beautiful voice. She can't wait to start piano lessons and loves to sing while playing piano. Her progress report always shows great marks in math and of course reading she is excelling in. She was so excited that she got the golden ticket for the 100th anniversary celebration of Olol. She is extremely social and after school asks "are we doing anything special tonight" or "is anyone coming over for dinner" she helps the boys very much and is their little mother. She can be easily distracted and we have to remind her to concentrate on what she is doing. She loves her iPad and would love a phone and her own Facebook page. She gets nervous about safety things like driving fast or not having seatbelt on. She prays beautifully and has memorized difficult prayers. Play dates are on hold for a while because it's difficult for her to be happy on them with Luke around sharing attention and also after a long day at school. She is the most special, the most gorgeous, talented, brilliant and extremely loving girl we could ever ask for

Jake -

Cutest chubby cheeks, his eyes light up when the kids play peek a boo or just come and talk to him in a baby voice which is almost all the time. Older kids are obsessed with him. He is constantly smiling. He loves to eat!!! He slept in the rock and play next to our bed until 6 months old. He hated sleeping flat, had to do the cry it out and he did so well teaching himself to go to sleep by sucking on his two middle fingers and then also with the binki. He loves banana and sweet potato the best. He can sit very well at 6 months but doesn't want to roll from back to tummy. He loves his jumper. Phalfadoor, Phalfie suits him so well because his whispy hair is always sticking up so cute!!! He lights up when he sees Daddy come home and laughs when he slides down his legs, flies in the air, and he giggles when we kiss and give him zerbits on his neck! He loves his car seat and likes to nap in the car. He hates the bath or any water and screams through the whole bath! We are so crazy in love with our baby boy!

August 2015

Lydia - 17 more days until our first baby goes to kindergarten. She is 100% ready but mom is going to be a mess letting her go that first day. She is so brilliant. She can ready almost anything and sound out other big words. She can open the paper or any adult book and read. She likes to sit with us and add and subtract numbers. This summer she has had many camps because she just adores the social interaction. She asks every night what are we doing tomorrow then after the morning activity she wants to have another activity/playdate! She only naps maybe one day a week when she is super tired. she has rest time instead but by 7pm she is so tired!!! She always wants to dress to the 9s and adores her stick on earrings. she doesn't want to put her hair up or back even when it is hot though. She likes to wear it down and doesn't like to brush it much. she likes to eat eggs, raisin bran, waffles, cream of wheat for breakfast. she is a very good helper 99% of the time. She will run up the stairs and get the boys shoes etc. She will help mom up from the couch when super pregnant. She can not wait for Jake to arrive!!! She wants to hold him all day long she said. she sits with luke in the back of the car now and helps him put his seatbelt on each time! This summer she has really started swimming well! She went off the diving board for the first time and then 3 weeks later went off the 5 meeter platform!!!! She was so brave. It took her 2 times looking and walking down the steps but then her friend Malia jumped and she followed after. After the first time she went off many times! Froto Beekins is what jeff usually calls her. she asks jeff if she looks pretty. she likes when luke sleeps in her bed with her. She gets scared easily. always asks us - is everything ok? she is Obsessed with the phone, texting people, facebook, calling people, asking - who is it as soon as the phone rings.

Luke - Loves drawing and coloring now. He plays so very well by himself at home and his toys and usually Drew. He likes to color with the markers that don't show up unless on special paper. He also likes any cars, little animal toys, and his scooter. He is super silly and talks moron all the time. Jeff and him talk back and forth in moron and laugh together! When he gets mad he calls me bad mommy. Minawash, sir gooey, beh beh beh beh. When jeff comes home on Friday he yells weekend to Luke and points at him. Luke yells weekend back at him points at him. super cute! Luke is the one that wrestles the most with jeff without crying or complaining about it. drew and him are in the room together now but luke likes to sleep in our bed and be moved when we come up or sleep with Lydia. he naps everyday but plays in his bed for a bit before falling asleep. He gets to stay up an hour later than the other two and is so sweet and loving during that time. He either plays well or snuggles with us on the couch during that time. He calls me sweetie mommy! He is extremely loving and shows it. He takes our hands and kisses our palms. He doesn't eat well at meals. Breakfast is the best for him but he loves to have toys at the table and doesn't sit well at the table at all now. We really have to encourage him to eat and keep sitting. he doesn't like to be away from us much. he doesn't like to go to camp but when he is there he has fun as long as charelston or evan is there! he only has 2 camps this summer. He loves to jump into the pool in a silly way off the side of the pool. He isn't interested in swimming without his floatie. He is very happy with it on. he can put his own shoes on and dress himself. He loves teenage mutin ninja turtles, or batman, just because his friends introduced those characters to him. he has never watched the shows. Loves  little einsteins tv. he has really smelly feet in the summer and laughs and wants jeff to smell them. Loves to eat turkey and strawberries. Obsessed with sticks and loves playing aqnd running around at park with his guy friends. He does like to push a little with his friends but I think its just to get their attention. So handsome and we tell him that, he gets silly or bashful. loves to watch playdough egg videos on our phones. excited for soccer this fall! says he wants to play with daddy the whole time.

Drew - Such a sweet loving baby but has just stared getting tons of personality!!! Loves to scream in the car and at the dinner table and tries to talk and tell us what he wants but its hard to figure out what he is saying. He has really started talking the last two weeks though. He says elmo, all of our names, mix, really repeats everything we say, puppy, ball, milk, mio (which means any drink), bug, butt, baby, even says Jakes name and knows he is in my belly. he is obsessed with jumping off the ottoman onto the couch and it makes me nervous.  He loves playing any sport or throwing any ball. He goes to sleep and nap so easily. He likes to read books with you then you just place him in his crib with his binki (ebbee) and he is out.  He likes to get naked or just take his shirt off. We have to tell him to keep his diaper on or bugs with get his bottom. When Luke comes down from his nap Drew runs to him to hug and kiss him like he hasn't seen him in months. Its adorable. When Drew gets mad he tries to bite or scratch and gets cute mad face. Jeff gives him mouth kiss which is a little kiss on the side of his mouth and he HATES it. He comes running to me and wants me to rub it off. As long as I rub it off he is fine and runs back to jeff to wrestle and get in the mix. Has to kiss and hug jeff when he goes to work and asks wheres daddy all day. He has cute birdlurds when he wakes. His little forehead scar from running into the kitchen door frame is looking a little better but he fell outside while running with his chicken wing arms and opened it up a bit again and made a big bump right at the scar. He likes to jump/fall into you from the side of the pool but always has to be held because he is too skinny to fit in the floatie and is scared a little and needs you to hold him. squeezes faces with his fingers and nails. takes him shoes off in the car and screams for elmo video in car.

May 2015

Drew- getting to be big boy. Says many words such as Lydia, bird, shoe, GO! (In the car). Calls his binki an eebee. We want to take it away but he's so obsessed that we give them to him for naps and sleep. Obsessed with sports. Plays basketball for 30mins straight in house and with Luke next door neighbor with real big bball and hoop. Will throw ball to our Luke and Luke will hit it and they run to get ball. Drew sits with daddy and watches all sorts of sports. First word was ball. Runs soooo cute with his fists at his chest and elbow out like chicken wings and he's so serious when he runs. Super skinny waist- he's 20 months but wears 6-12 month shorts. 12-18 size falls off of him. Super sweet with momma! Lays on shoulder and cuddles. Understands all that we say! Wipes kisses off face and makes eyebrow mad face. Laughs and loves being silly with daddy. Loves daring things like being upside down, sitting on top of car or refrigerator. Tries to use scooter already. Won't stop climbing things!

Luke- rule follower, safety guy. Loves to do what lydi does or a friend of his does. Super sweet especially at night with just mom and dad on the couch. Holds all his friends hands! Obsessed with Evan and Charleston his "buddies" from school. Loves when dad whispers in his ear at night you're my buddy forever. Really into ninja turtles now- pjs and underwear. Playing t-ball and has a good arm when he throws! Only orders chicken strips at restaurants. Reads books in bed before nap. Finishing up balloon room now at UUM preschool. Very organized and likes things in their place. Plays and takes care of Drew very very well. Talks in moron talk all the time and thinks it's funny. Gets mad and will try and hit me but then feels bad. Loves bike and scooter.

Lydia- lots of attitude and sass but very helpful when she wants to be. Loves taking walks because she gets to see everyone around us. Asks everyday for a play date or to play with a neighbor. Super social- says hi to everyone she sees and also knows all the names in her school and siblings. Reads at 1st grade level already even though she's only 4 years old and yet to start Kindergarten. Having petting zoo party at farm for 5th bday. Wants frozen party though now. Very spirited and wants things her way. First dance recital this weekend and can't wait to wear makeup and do her hair. All she wants to wear is flip flops and stick on earrings

February 2015

Drew (nicknames have been gop, goppy, gip geech, drettles, drewman drettles, tooban, da fooban, and many iterations of drewman and drettles) - running everywhere can come to you and give hugs and open mouth kisses, wants to do everything big kids do and follows them around, throws food to get attention but is a great eater still, when older kids go into school he runs ahead and wants to play with sand table or his favorite- the kitchen!!!, starting to say words like- all done, apple (he grabs them out of refrigerator and walks around taking tiny little bites out of his big apple), bird, ball, mommy, daddy, yidi, yuke, loves cars and trucks and especially balls and basketball hoop. He lays on shoulder right away when tired for nap and sleep. Smiles and giggles huge with his cute chicklet teeth and squints his eyes. He understands all that we say and direct him to do- very smart!

Luke (nicknames have been sugar filled, handsome dooky, mankeeto tickle pits, my buddy, and many more) - loves school especially his friend Evan, loves coloring and being on computer, building blocks, playing with animals and cars trucks and trains. Obsessed with the train store and will play with the train tables for hours. Learning to dress himself, zip coat, and put on own shoes. He's talking very well and loves to sit and read/look at books. Loves Drew so much and sometimes squeezes him too hard because loves him especially his hands. Always wakes up with birdlurds. Loves the bath and running up and down the side walk. Loves the zoo and train there. Drinks a ton of water, juice, and milk but won't eat much food other than his favorites- oranges, eggs, chicken nuggets, pizza. He won't eat a vegetable! Loves toy story movie and going to library for story time. He loves to play this kindergarten learning game and is great at it. Very smart!

Lydia (nicknames have been Froto Beekenz, Meb Keflezghi, me cupie, beeboo, cupcake, cutie, and many more) - smart as a whip already reading big words and has a photographic memory for sure. Still very social and loves people. She is always asking who are we going to see today and tonight what are we going to do today. She always needs an activity or play date. She is super super loud and we have to constantly remind her to lower her voice. She is obsessed with school but already there is girl drama sometimes that hurts her feelings. She loves to color, write, read, run, take walks, play in snow- but wants to do all with friends or Luke. She is very picky about what she wears and wants to wear stick on earrings and throws a fit when I won't let her wear makeup. She can't wait for kindergarten. She can be smart Alec and talk back to us big time. She likes to talk potty talk and gets in trouble for it but just at home. She has stopped taking naps but is so tired has to got to sleep at 7. Luke stays up with us and is a perfect little cuddling angel for that extra hour.

We are starting plans for our addition this summer to build in 2016.

We love you so much, Mommy & Daddy!

November 2014

drew - drew started taking major steps at his 14 month bday mark. he is now walking from the kitchen to the tv room. he loves to eat and his favorite things now are mandarin oranges, turkey, string cheese, yogurt, grapes, graham crackers. He does this funny thing where he tries to give open mouth kisses but we are always afraid that he will bite down with his cute sharp teeth. he thinks that is so funny. he is super tickelish and giggles at everything. he is still such a sweet, loving, happy baby for sure. he still takes 2 naps a day and sleeps in his sleep sack but now he likes to go to sleep with his cup of milk. He is starting to LOVE reading books and touching all the pages. He understands many words and understands commands. he can nod his head yes and its super cute. he says momma and dadda and sometimes puppy. he is trying to talk more. he has had 3 ear infections in the last few months so hopefully he won't have anymore or the dr may have to put tubes in. He sleeps very well at night. Obsessed with binki still and wants to turn around in the car to see the movie. races around the ottoman with the kids giggling. He loves to play with trucks and blocks. he still doesn't like to sit in the bath but loves to stand at the faucet and bite the water as it comes out. he was a crab and frog for halloween. Nicknames: Dreddles, gip geech, goppy, drewman

luke - loves his cars and buses but is really into building blocks and houses for his little animals. he likes to categorize them into farm and zoo animals. his teachers say that he is advanced in the organization and matching and art areas. she was impressed that he organized his cars by color at school and lined them up perfectly. He loves to listen to books and asks many many questions. he doesn't like to eat much at all. obsessed with candy and chicken nuggets and mio drink. he won't sit in his chair at dinner well and hasn't been listening to us very much. when we put him in time out he just screams and throws things. he is scared of his daddy though. he never wants me to tell daddy any of the bad things he did while daddy was at work. he cuddles on the couch with daddy and in his book reading chair and they talk about how much they love each other. he wants to climb on everything and the winter is not going to be easy for him pent up in the house. his friends at school are liam, billy, evan, and charleston. his teachers say that he is a very good boy but sometimes pushes a little. no hitting, he saves that for home and hitting his sister. they chase each other around the house and luke just learned how to pull lydias hair. he sleeps in a twin bed on the floor now with truck sheets that he loves. on his bday cake he wanted horses and trucks! he LOVES play animals esp horses. he likes to make houses for them. Nicknames: Mankeeto tickle pits, The Duke of Dookey, Sugar-filled

lydia - is getting to understand other peoples feelings much better now and really tries to behave most of the time. She takes naps about every other day and has a big bed in her room now. She  loves to paint her nails and put on pretend makeup. She wears her sequin purse that jodi gave her to school each day and has lipstick and change in it. she dresses herself in funny outfits and doesn't want to wear her hair up unless it is to dance class on Saturdays. she played soccer this fall and was aggressive and enjoyed it but didn't like when she got hurt. she is still a drama queen and says she has a boyfriend at school. for xmas she is going to get a bike and she wants stick on earrings. she loves to wear necklaces to school. She is very advanced in her letters and reading. She loves to read and can sound out many words. She has many books that she can read through already. She has a memory like no other. she understands so much and asks many questions. She is very close to God and prays at night very well. she can say the our father and hail mary already! she likes frozen movie songs but is scared of the movie at times. once she is overtired she loses it and causes a huge drama scene with friends or family. she is a good helper and likes to help set the table and will clean up her toys if she is praised during and after. Nicknames: bookenz kiss, me cuppy, meb kafleezgee, 

August 2014

Lydi- Still sleeps in her toddler bed, she needs us to count to 4 and move our finger down from her forehead four times to nose each time she sleeps, likes door cracklied, dresses herself with Jewelry and stick on earrings and perfume, starting the shower by herself but still likes to play in there more than wash, best friends are Charlotte Kittner, Parker and frannie kluesner, loves to work on writing her numbers and letters, she is really starting to read and can spell many small words and sounds big ones out, bookey nickname, she likes to nickname the boys and Jeff, likes to wrestle with daddy but screams and laughs the whole time which mommy can't stand, loves the iPad and computer and phone - Facebook, can say our father prayer all by herself, starting to be really good in church, goes to Sunday school, will be in superstar preschool room, this fall doing soccer and dance, helps a good amount and loves being a caretaker, likes hide and seek, can really swim well now, can jump off diving board at farm and swim to shallow end, loves her nails painted, couch time after boys go to bed,

luke - puts shoes on opposite feet, has to wear socks even with sandles, starting to potty train, loves his spiderman and thomas tank engine underwear - has to dump his own pee in the potty and it gets it on his hands all the time also refuses to poop on the potty, obsessed with reading book before bed then putting them each in crib then climbing over the arm of the chair, needs all to be in same exact order, likes me to sing one boy song old mcdonald "farm song" and rock a bye baby. loves when daddy whispers in his ear he says "...gordock..." and daddy talks about what he loves about the day with Luke to him. loves kicking the soccer ball, throwing the ball, digging in the sand at the beach, jumping in the waves "watch out big one" we couldnt just say watch out - he would get mad we had to change it and add big one. loves his scooter and helmet and riding it in the park with jack ketcham, charleston perez, and knox alferman. loves breakfast but doesnt eat much meat and only wants to eat cheese fruit and dairy. obsessed with saying BOTH when given a choice - luke do you want juice or milk? Both Both! about to start school in the balloon room. mankiss and buddy hug are sayings with daddy. fit in the pic'sh, loves to "power bomb" daddy, when daddy leaves he comes to door to give high five and one more kiss. asks all day long "where's daddy? i say where do you think he is? he says "woork". on vacation he would ask jodi where's paul even when paul was standing right next to her and did that with each couple, will not stop "loving on" Drew but that is basically pulling and squeezing his arms and legs. when he has been sick he says kiss me goppy, says his prayers at night so cute and prayed for dog Piper on the other street. lydia takes care of him like she is his mommy and nurse

Drew- At 10.5 months started crawling and about 11 started pulling up on everything and taking steps while holding on, crawls everywhere in the house and puts everything in mouth, eats everything and lots of food, drinks regular milk now and nurses about twice a day, likes to chew on toys, has 4 teeth on bottom and 2 on top, loves when daddy tickles his arm pit and giggles really cute, Luke is constantly hugging and pulling and kissing him which now makes him cry, drewman dreedles, straight up nettes, kooman kettles, tuman tettles, stands up in crib now, has figured out that crying gets him attention, falls asleep on daddy's shoulder in the chair, likes to swing, still doesn't like the bath much but getting better, loves the pool, so adorable when he cuddles with you and puts cheeks on your cheek, loves to throw balls back and forth and even can throw to the dog and play fetch

June 2014

drew-  has 4 teeth on top 2 on bottom, starting to get on all 4s and rock back and forth, will roll multiple times to get to what he wants, loves talking with luke and lydia - they go back and forth with each other in the car and at the table, loves to eat cheerios, turkey, cheese, bananas, avocado, small pieces of chicken, is still breastfeeding but only in morning, naps, and night, grabs everything in sight and wants to put in mouth, loves lounging in the pool in his raft, super layed back and easy going but now on the move and super squirmy when you hold him or change diaper, he wants to play on the ground all the time and now gets sad when mommy or the kids leave the room he is in, hates wearing his sun hat, always giggling and smiling, loves being tickled and peak a boo, loves his wubanub binkis, has never worn shoes yet, not too fond of the bath, claps hands well, starting to wave, can give high fives to kids, loves playing with cars and trucks with luke

luke - starting to be able to understand him better but still broken sentences, doesn't want to potty train - says hes scared of the potty, obsessed with puzzles and very good at the usa map puzzle, loves trying on everyones shoes and says - i a socca playa, reads 5 little monkeys jumping on the bed by himself, needs to do everything himself - if i help him out of the car he has to climb back into the car and get out himself, still in crib but getting hard to go to sleep during naps a little, loves to swim with his floaty in the pool, does everything lydia does, bye bye night night bye bye deet, wants to hold and squeeze drew all the time, can say his prayer at night by himself and brush his teeth a little, hates going poopy - hurts his bottom and says don't touch me while he is pooping, still loves playing and lining his cars up perfectly in a row, has to have things just his way with lining toys up, wears high heels and makeup when lydi does, plays really well with Charleston, liam, and other boys, sings/screams let it go in the car, wants to pick out his own clothes, can put his own shoes on by himself but gets frustrated when his shoes come un velcroed, favorite food is cheese, grilled cheese, strawberries and milk

Lydi - smart and sassy but very caring considerate and sweet, pays well with charolotte, matt, and other kids, wants to be faster, taller, and older than her friends, loves sidewalk chalk scooter princess sprinkler, wants everyone to spell things for her and interested in sounding out words, can read names in my phone, loves playing games - headband game, go fish, candy land, matching, eye spy, does expressions like mommy and uses words like daddy "i'm sick of it", always wants to know where everyone is and where they are going, likes getting mail, runs to daddy when he gets home (with luke), needs to have constant activity, loved her pompom dance class with mrs west and is now in neighborhood camp, really wants to learn how to swim but still working on it. likes hanging with older girls like parker but still needs to learn how to share more, good at dribbling soccer ball, sings let it go and makes up song at end of the night about all the daily activities, does exactly what i tell her not to do, drama queen and cries at the drop of a hat, loves baby cousin amelia and can hold her very well, very motherly and nurturing, hates her hair brushed, wants to sit in the regular seat in the car and argues with me about it, gets couch time with mommy and daddy once boys go to sleep, loves dress up, eats well and even starting to eat salad

APRIL 2014

Drew- giggles when kiss neck, obsessed with grabbing the spoon when eating food so now have to give him a spoon to play with then feed with another, trying to talk but it's like a hollow groan. Loved reclining in pool chair in destin like lazy boy chair, loves when kids sing abcs and take me out to ball game- any crying and singing to him he stops, like jumping in jumper seat, leans forward in highchair at restaurants and eat it, obsessed with watching the kids, loves to sit and play with musical toys, when change diaper he reaches for lamp

Luke- loved raking and digging, running through puddles and chasing birds at Destin beach, loved daddy bouncing in pool but at times didn't want to get in the pool because it was wet:), sometimes wakes up from naps on wrong side of the bed and has grumpy face, confused at what he wants in bath no bath in bath no bath, loves his abc cardinal book and knows all the letters and numbers, wants to sleep with trucks, in destin slept in queen bed, won't share with lydi or Drew well, doesn't want to participate  at soccer yet, doesn't like us to brush his teeth and sometimes have to hold him down, addicted to sugar and Doritos, does EVERY single thing Lydia does including repeating what she says, chases birds up street into yards wants to touch- " i touch I touch", Talking much better, obsessed with goppy always hugging and kissing him still loves trucks, Legos, puzzle, calls us in at night and says ah oh mommy ah oh daddy meaning his blankets fell off him and he needs them back on- his little stall mechanism. Got car movie goggles and Spiderman underwear for Easter

Lydia- wants alone time, loves playing waitress, amazing memory including people's names and numbers (remembered the destin door code after us telling her once), doesn't listen to us sometimes and does it her way- other times is a super great helper, drama when tired especially- was crying because she didn't have her cowboy boots in destin and wanted to wear them to dinner, likes me to wrap her doll "like they do in the hospital", still has night terrors if no nap, starting to grow out of naps, loves to say nicknames for the boys- calls them strewman, druke, stewman, daddyshmaddy, had to teach her to count to five and deep breath when mad, her and Luke fight by Luke hitting her and her hitting back or squeezing his cheeks, loves to run in circles with Luke chasing her, loves playing hide and seek with Luke and daddy, likes playing games like memory candy land and headband guessing game, gets her privileges taken away when disobeys including sitting on the couch after boys go to sleep, obsessed with gum (only gets for special occasion) very picky of her clothes, talks and acts like an adult, got press on earrings, nail polish (which she's obsessed with) and doc mc stuffins goggles and underwear for Easter. Principal office for being mean to one of the boys

Love forever, mommy and daddy

March 2014

Hi our three little loves. Here are some new happenings:

Lydia, (almost 4yrs old)
Noodle head pasta Lydia wants to nickname her friends at school silly Moron nicknames
Very helpful but also likes to tell Luke what to do and not to do
Can peddle tricycle
Can type her name, Luke's, and drews

Luke, (almost 2.5yrs old)
Wants to know everything's name- he says "Name name"
Says You're welcome instead of Thank you
Names of animals Benny bear, Max mouse, Peter the puppy
Kids climb into crib with Drew
Roll with dooky
Knows all his letters, colors, and numbers

Drew, (six months old)
Eats rice cereal other kids didn't
Only loud and frustrated when food isn't fed fast enough to him
Getting two front bottom teeth
Getting close to sitting on your own
Rolls all over the floor by himelf now
Loves to take socks off
Big giggler



We love you all so much,
Mommy & Daddy

February 2014

lydia - getting so big, can do so many things by yourself like dressing, you want to wear all dresses, perfume, but don’t like to do your hair. love doc mcstuffins, always asks what kind of cake other people want for their birthday (tell birthday story about dixon's house and missing the song, very caring - say things like "oh mommy let me help you" "you look like you have your hands full" or "what can i help you with" loves holding drew but still 100% good at it. still whine and cry for attention, starting to decrease amount of naps but loses it at night if you don’t have a nap

luke - says mommapie, daddypie, mimipie (especially when calling for us after sleeping or when hugging or kissing us) sleeps with bear, moose, and dog and two blankets and wants to bring them downstairs. loves to sleep with his fire truck "ire uck" sheets. wants to take off his own coat and loves his "luke hat", loves to draw and paint, moves animals in and out of his truck over and over, had melt downs the last week or two including - wanting to eat out of the bag of cheetos for dinner, eating pretzels out of the trash can, getting in bath with all of clothes on. getting better at talking but still difficult to understand all that he wants so he gets frustrated,

Drew - you eat so well without any bad tasting face, took the avocado and banana so well without any crying, ate so much and was whning a little for more when he had to wait for the next bite. eyes light up and smile comes when lydia feeds him, loves to put his toes in mouth now, starts crying when the older kids leave the room he is in - starting to love being with people, starting to roll over from back to stomach, always smiling, people say over and over that he is such a "pretty" baby, he could almost be a girl because his face is so perfect and beautiful, his cheeks and wrists are getting that baby chub!

December 2013

New happenings.......

Drew -

You love sucking your fingers - trying to figure out how to suck thumb or fingers spits binki out now, never stops smiling and laughing, love watching your siblings, gooey eyes all the time from clogged tear ducts, never cries unless hungry tired or wet, easy going go with the flow baby, don't know what color your eyes will be  - mommy thinks green or maybe blue, working on tummy time, sits well when put up on couch or chair, Luke and Lydi are constantly pushing and prodding loving on you, love your mobile in the crib and reading books with luke, lydia calls you my sweet baby, starting to reach and hold toys and rattles, love to talk giberish sounds, getting chubby cheeks, love being sung to and your head rubbed

Luke -

As soon as we get in the car you start pointing and saying "uck" mommy for any truck that passes, also obsessed with ariel and elmo movie in the car, constantly carrying your stack of books from your shelf/floor to the chair or from downstairs to up the stairs, has to carry a huge stack of them, don't like the shower  - say hot even if it isn’t but still love the bath, like stacking blocks, legos, doing animal and car puzzles, taking the animal and sesame street ornaments off tree, using two-3 words together now, started climbing out of crib very early even when we put mattress on the floor so we put you to sleep in jeans for 3 days and you forgot about crawling out, just able to part your hair now, want to play at lydi’s school every time we drop her off, protective and loving toward goppy, ask for eggies and milk every morning, calls Santa tata, our elf Frank, wants to talk on the phone to uncle paul and grandmas, you think all calls are facetime, so you will hold the phone up to a book or the elf so the other person can see it you think, asked santa for " elmo uck" at first you were scared of santa but then you sat next to him and at the end he hugged you.

Lydia -

getting so mature but already has attitude with deep sighs and eye rolls, adores school especially music class, very girls and loves purses, stick on earings, necklaces, asked santa for a princess watch and princess playdough, you are very helpful when you want to be, very polite, we have to ask you to get dressed about 5 times before you will do it, loves to color and play pladough, you make bday cakes with playdough and sing happy bday, love to wear your pink cowboy boots, wants to take your doll everywhere, has a new name for the dolly every day, can read the stocking names at mimi's house perfectly, know all your numbers and letters, still obsessed with facebook because of peoples pictures, still come in our bed almost every night to snuggle with daddy, says sayings like mommy - take your time, sorry its taking a while, do you mind - love to joke with daddy and wrestle on the ground and couch, very independent, tells us not to argue (story about happy family), took luke and Lydi to first movie frozen (you both sat on daddy’s lap), very inquisitive about the elf and his magic and how santa’s sled flies and such

Love you three so much!!!

October 2013

Hi three love bugs! Here are some new things going on with each of you:

Drew -

getting chubby - at 6 weeks you're already 9lbs3oz, we love when you smile. You love to stare at us in the eyes and try to make cooing sounds, we have had to keep the kids away from you because of croup and the kids can hardly stay away from kissing you, losing alot of your dark hair you were born with, we think your eyes will stay light - either green or blue, love your swing, working on tummy time but don't like to practice it. loves to fall asleep on our chests, you love watching sports in daddy's arms, gets really relaxed in dad's arms, likes his shhhhhh, very sweet easy go with the flow baby, GOPPY is your nickname (given to you by Luke)

Luke-

scared of the car wash drive through - cries the whole time, every other word out of your mouth is elmo, love your legos now and plays with lego car on the floor, still obsessed with the eeesh, started bringing your plate over to the sink like lydia does, wants to go to school with lydi every day, loves to climb UP the slide at the park, if we say bath time you start singing "ba ba ba bubbly bubbles", loves throwing the ball to daddy,mommy, and Lel a, loves drew and calls him Goppy, started brushing your teeth by yourself, mainly eats cheese yogurt eggs and chicken, wants an elmo cake for bday, going to the zoo for 2nd bday and having family over that night, going to richards on the 9th for his 2nd bday

Lydi -

loves playing with playdough now, reads books and makes up the funniest things for example today you said" ariel was a sweet princess and wanted to kiss her handsome prince. she went to the ocean but there was no water in it. She found her dog but he had no eyes." You always start and finish with once upon a time and they lived happily evea afta, your teacher said,"this class would be boring without Lydia" also said you have very high personal and verbal skills and are very polite. you whine alot and we have to tell you no whining,

loves the iphone and ipad still

Love always and forever, 

MOMMY AND DADDY (PANTS!)

September 2013

Drew is here (born 9/12/13), so we'll start with him this time.........

Drew- so surprised when he came out with long dark hair, so little at
6lb 6oz, long skinny legs and arms but big knobby knees like daddy, long
eyelashes, not sure if he will have blue green or brown eyes but mommy
thinks green, loves being swaddled, took a bottle and formula very
well and quick to learn, breast feeds like a champ- was back to birth
weight by day 6, kids adore him and Luke calls him baby Gop, very easy
going and laid back baby, hair colic in front hair line that parts
down the middle, all our family is in love with him, likes to be super
warm with two swaddles and a hat to sleep

Luke - is in an Elmo phase right now. He loved Elmo videos on my
phone, DVDs, stuffed animals and on tv, loves drew and say hi baby and
gives him back pats, he had never been mean or jealous but had tried
to love him too hard by hugging him tight, he's obsessed with Jeff's
shoes and puts then on many mornings, his favorite foods now are
yogurt, cheese, and eggs, his favorite book is goodnight baseball,
likes to say ah back pats and ah treat, he's talking much more but understands
everything, loves the bath tub and sings ba ba ba bubbly bubbles, once
6:45 hits he gets super tired and wants to pass out, loves dropping
Lydi off at school and wants to stay and play

Lydi - rainbow room mon wed Friday, mrs smith and mrs soifer are her
teachers, loves the playdough, painting,  singing who who who are you
song, 7 kids in the class, teacher day Lydia is very good at cleaning
up after herself and being compassionate toward other classmates,
brought a spoon to school the day she was special person of the day,
overjoyed at being special person of the day, brushes her teeth and
hair by herself now, still naps well, bed at 8pm, iikes Cinderella and
little mermaid in the car, loves drew wants to hold him all the time,
tried to put him on her shoulder

We love you three so much,

Mommy and Daddy (pants)

August 2013

1 month until Laughlin Baby #3 arrives.

In sad news, your wonderful great grandma Marglous passed away this month on 8/7/13. While we're very sad that you will never really remember or know her, she lived a great life and we will have many stories to tell you when you are ready. 

New happenings:

Luke loves the vacuum, does everything Lydi does, can keep himself busy with balls and books, loves his big boy room, had to move books off his shelf because he wanted to read 16 per night, goes right to bed without any crying, sleeps with bear and moose from mimi's Alaska trip, does the serious look with scrunched eye brows when asking a question, obsessed with Mimi and scout, calls dogs "ruffs", always scratching up his knees and face, rubs his eyes hard when he gets grogy. You call your binki "eesh" which is adorable.


Lydi asks every person what their name is sometimes multiple times at zoo, restaurants, pool, park, grocery store, starts UUM preschool in 2 weeks, doesn't listen too well when she is outside running wont stop, wants to dress herself and is very adamant on wearing what she wants, wants to wear pants in 80 degree weather, loves her pink cowboy boots, other frequent questions she asks: "where's your daddy?" " what's your favorite color or favorite animal at the zoo?" What food did you order?" " can you drive or do you have to sit in a car seat?", asks to have sleepovers at Mimis and Grammy Ts, loves her princess scooter and helmet, super excited for the new baby, getting to be a good helper around the house

Love you both so much,

Mommy and Daddy

July 2013

Two months until baby #3. You guys are sooo cute.

Lydia - Some new things that you love are eating plain guacamole, earrings, necklaces, perfume, build a bear, Disney store, and all types of princess stuff. You keep telling us that you can't wait to meet, love, and hold our next baby. We know you'll be great because you're so great already with Lukey dookey. Your great at playing with him, sharing things, and giving him lots of hugs. You're going to be starting school in July and are so excited for it. We know you'll love all the people. We are a touch worried about your attitude. It's not very often, but when you have it you tend to yell and kick, which is not good at all in a school setting. Hopefully, that won't be happening there. This summer you have been practicing your swimming at the pool with daddy. You have to use your floatie unless daddy is practicing with you. If he is, then you jump off the side of the pool and swim to him. It's adorable. Just like daddy, you don't like the food on your plate to be touching too much. Sometimes daddy squeezes and kisses you too rough and that annoys you, but he just loves you sooooo much.

Luke - Some new things you love are little animals of all kinds, throwing things especially balls (sometimes you do it mad with a "temper face"), the slide in our back yard or really slides of any kinds, and you love your mimi so much. In church, during the "peace be with you" part of the mass, you love to put your little hand out and shake everyone's hand. It really is about the cutest thing we've ever seen. You have to shake everyone's hand and sometimes multiple times. At bedtime, you are now really obsessed with reading books. You keep saying, "book, book, book," until we read you at least a handful of books. You'll even get up out of the chair and our laps to go retrieve a new book and bring it back to us to read. You have an ENORMOUS fear of bugs of all types. You will point at one when you see one with a look of fear on your face and say "bug, bug, bug" to us. It's also extremely adorable. You also have this really cute run that you do. You take both of your hands and put them fully back behind you (like an airplane) while you run. It's really funny. You do it inside the house, but you really do it bigtime when you're outside in the yard.

We love you both so much and are so blessed to have children as wonderful as you.

Love you so huge,
Mommy and Daddy

June 2013

This one is written by mommy:

 

Lukey - favorite thing to do at restaurants is play with cup and straw, screams for it. sings ba ba ba and woah woah woah at bath time like the raphi song. favorite books are little blue truck and does a duck cluck. No more binki and he got rid of it very easily. trying to talk but right now he goes around talking gibberish all day in the house. He can say birds, bug, all done, and many more. he stands at the pantry and yells for yogurt pretzels and fruit snacks. When he gets mad he throws things. He could eat all day long and he is always the last one eating at meals. throws balls constantly even in the bath tub against the bath wall. wrestles with lydi and daddy. crawls on head of lydi on the floor. climbs on other people's feet and legs to get higher or see over things. threw rocks in the ocean for 45 mins straight. walked around the pool and threw toys into the pool then got them out and threw them all in again.

 

lydi sleeps with her dollie and duckie under her tummy and always asks for a nose wipe. she pointed to my boobs and asked for some of those for her birthday. I said what, earrings? she said no boobs. obsessed with the farm book and wants to read it every night. she reads to herself and makes up stories, words, and songs. she has one moron word - fransagoodie. She volunteered at the sea lion show all by herself and wanted her face painted and to go on the carousel. She asks everyone their name about 10 times. Loves disney princesses but only wants to watch cinderella. runs up to everyone to talk to them. sings to and rocks her baby dolls. for her 3rd b day she got a water table, disney princess scooter, coloring book, game for little ipad, picnic table, candy land, bike helmet, tennis racket, sticker earrings

April 2013

Hi Cuties,

We'll start with Luke (aka Azadukey!) today. Your first word(s), we think, are "all boy" which is hysterical. We always say that you are all boy, because of the things you do so much differently than Lydia. She is definitely girly and you are all boy. A new obsession with you is animals, especially birds and dogs of all kinds. You love to point them out wherever we go and get real excited about them. I think I mentioned that you love playing catch and really throwing any type of ball around. Your coordination and throwing arm are really good. You love the baseball song, "take me out to the ballgame." You kind of have that engineering mindset too. You enjoy putting things in and out of boxes and like to see how things work and how they are made. A challenge now for us is that you've just started to get attitude. It's kind of funny when you are trying to show us that you are mad and you go and throw your cup on the floor. Speaking of your drinks, you really like chugging your milk down, but really haven't taken to any other type of drink. Hopefully, that starts to change because it's causing you to have really painful poo-poos.

Lydia, you are even more social than ever, which I think I've mentioned quite a few times in these writings. It doesn't matter where you're at (playground, store, restaurants, walking down the street, etc.) all you want to do is say hi to absolutely everyone you see. You also like to ask "what's your name" and "what are you doing" and "where's your mommy and daddy" etc. etc. etc. You love playing with and taking care of your dolls. You even have to have them in your bed with you. Speaking of your bed, we recently converted your crib to a big girl bed. You are now sleeping there on your own and it's open so you could just walk right out, but most nights you sleep very well in your bed. As always, you love the ipad and all these electronic. On the ipad, you especially love to watch videos where they are singing happy birthday with cake and candles. It's your absolute favorite thing in life and on the computer. You even try to sign the videos that are in a different language! One of your new things is to tell us this long drawn out stories that don't really make much sense, then you laugh at the end of the story. It's really cute! One of the things that worries us is that you tend to not look where you're going when you're walking, playing, running, etc. You trip quite often because of this. We think it's because you are so social that you just keep talking or singing without focusing on what you're doing.

We love you both so much,
Daddy and Mommy Pants!

March 2013

Hello my two little love bugs,

Lydia, you love to read books especially brown bear. When you read them, you just make up your own words, which is adorable. You love to pray at night and fold your little hands together. You also love to kiss everyone and talk to baby #3 in Mommy's belly. You're basically the most social toddler around too. You say hello to absolutely everyone that you come across and in any place. This social nature you have is evident too in that you are obsessed with Facebook. You've even taught yourself to post our pictures randomly on the site with jiberish words. You love your Thursday dance class and going to the doctor's office (you think you're a nurse!). One of your favorite places in Bread Company, which you call the Muffy place. Mimi loves to take you there. Lately, you've learned to crawl out of your crib. You then come into our room and want to sleep in Mommy and Daddy's bed. This is not a good thing, but sometimes we let you get away with it because you're so darn cute and snuggly.

Luke, you love to kiss and hug just like Lydia. You're both love bugs. You love to eat, especially your morning eggs. You are obsessed with your binkie, especially come bed time. You can't sleep without it. You are a really coordinated little guy. You taught yourself how to go down the stairs so easily. You throw any kind of ball really well. You're also a star at playing with Legos. You are so close to talking, but not quite yet. This words you are coming really close to saying are oh, bird, baby, dog, mama, dada, and mimi. You love reading books and can identify anything that we ask you to point out to us. You really like reading through the animal books and pointing out all the animals, especially the cows and doggies. You also are obsessed with watching and pointing at birds and at airplanes when you are outside.

I love you both so incredibly much,
Your daddy.