bki&elarsen

2008-10-15T12:57:00.000-07:00

Haven't posted in a while. We have just been to busy for it. We just got back from a wonderful vacation to Hilton Head Island with my brother, his wife and their 4 1/2 year old. It was so relaxing and the weather was beautiful.
Lily is now 8 months and has two teeth, scoots all over the place and brightens every day. She is so sweet and mellow (a definate first for us!!)

Isaac and Eli are going to celebrate their 5th and 3rd birthday's this month, where in the world does time go. Isaac's latest accomplishment is riding a two wheeler and Eli talks and talks and talks and says some of the funniest things. If I could ever remember, I would write some of them here.

Our family has an exchange student from Brazil staying with us for a month right now. She is so sweet and we are glad she is here. She is part of the ESL homestay program at UC and will stay with us until the beginning of November.
Here are a few pictures from vacation.

2008-03-14T12:54:00.000-07:00

I can't believe our little girl is already a month. We (especially me) are seriously overcome by cabin fever. Finally this week the boys were able to go out in the backyard and expend some energy. It started last weekend when we got a blizzard. We had some enjoyable and some not so enjoyable times playing in the snow. The first time they went out in the snow it was still blowing snow, they did not enjoy sledding in this. Isaac came in and said, "I'm not going to go out in the snow EVER again!" The next day we went out and built a large snowman and had hot chocolate and popcorn with our neighbors. And the next day it was 50 degrees and they went out a few times. There goes the theory of NEVER going in the snow again!

This week except for today it has been warm and no rain. So lots of play time. I feel a cure for the cabin fever coming on.
Lily is doing well and we are all adjusting to her being with us and loving it. I'll be honest, I really am enjoying dressing a little girl, even her sleepers are cute.
Enjoy some pictures from the snow and of Lily at one month.

2008-02-16T11:56:00.000-08:00

"Guitar Heroes"

Happy Valentine's Day!

Another picture by the crocodile at the zoo!

At the Wright Patterson Air Force Museum with daddy,

In front of the F-22 Raptor.

The boys in space!

Lily being adorable!

Brett, Lily and I are having a quiet weekend at home while the boys spend the weekend with Beba and Pappy! My mom called this morning after getting them dressed for ideas where to take them because they wanted to know where they were going for the day. They are so bored having to stay home all the time! Thankfully Spring is not TOO far away we hope. It's different having a baby in the middle of flue season, we have to be so careful with all the germs!

The first two weeks of Lily's life have been pretty good. We have had lots of help especially with meals being prepared for us. With everything I have to keep up with, I couldn't imagine cooking too! What a blessing it is to get meals.

Here's some more pictures of our first two weeks with our little girl!

2008-02-08T06:05:00.000-08:00

Yes, She's here!
We welcomed Lily Marie on Tuesday February 5, 2008 at 7:51 in the morning. As far as labors go, I couldn't have asked for a better scenerio. I was supposed to be induced Wednesday morning, but Lily changed the plans! My water broke at 2:45 in the morning Tuesday. Since I was awake, but not yet having contractions, I decided to do a little sprucing up (ie: cleaned the bathroom, folded laundry, mopped the floor, normal things for nesting in the early am!) After cleaning, finishing my packing for the hospital and taking a shower, I decided to lay down (still no real contractions to speak of at 4:15 ish) Almost immediately I had a contraction, then another 8 minutes later. I got up, and went downstairs knowing now I was officially in labor. The contractions progressed quickly to 3 min, then 2. Brett called the doctor and he said "why are you calling me, get her to the hospital.") Our neighbor came to sit with the boys, who were now both awake at 5 am! Bless her for being willing to take on the challenge and bless my sister-in-law Jordan more, for taking them all day after that! When we got to the hospital I was in a lot of pain and already 6 cm. After what seemed like an eternity (maybe 25 min) I got an epideral. I delivered her at 7:51!
It was a little dramatic as she had her cord wrapped twice around her neck, but she still got good scores on her apgars. None of the professionals in the room were worried, but the rest of us were especially her daddy who had lots and lots of questions about the whole thing. We're happy to report after all the drama she's doing great!
Thanks for all the prayers for a safe healthy delivery. God has blessed us with a little, 6.8 lb miracle.
Isaac can't keep his hands off of her (in loving ways) Eli can't keep his hands off of her in not so loving ways, although I don't think he realizes patting her head hard is not good.
It has been really exciting to have her here after so much anticipation! Our world is now colored in many new shades, especially pink!

2008-02-04T15:23:00.000-08:00

Some cures for our cabin fever!!

Isaac playing on the blowup pirate ship at his cousin Livi's birthday party.

Daddy enjoying the fun at Livi's birthday party.

Eli having no fear as he slides down the giant shark slide with Beba at Livi's birthday party!

Isaac and Eli at the Otter exhibit at the aquarium. The best part about the aquarium is that is is a special time with only Daddy and the boys!

Look out for that big shark guys! More fun at the aquarium. Brett takes them most weekends. It is a nice change from the museum pass.

Seeing the plants at Krohn Conservatory. This was the edible display, "the giving tree."

Today we went to the zoo because it was in the 50's. It was really cloudy and most of the animals seemed to be off of display, but being a turtle and climbing the spider web never seem to get old!

I'm thankful that there are some things we can do to beat the winter blues. If we stay home the boys are so bored, we have to get out, even for a little while every day. It's going to get harder when Lily gets here, which is in hopefully two days! Stay tuned for pictures of our little girl in the next post.

2008-02-01T11:24:00.000-08:00

Quote from Isaac yesterday,
"Mom, I think we should leave God some cookies and milk."
me, "why"
Isaac: Because he works harder than Santa to create all of us.

Still waiting for Lily, hopefully she will be here soon. If not, inducement is scheduled for next Wednesday the 6th at 9 am!

2008-01-25T11:35:00.000-08:00

For all wondering, no baby girl yet....Still waiting. Hopefully she will arrive before or on her due date. I kinda like 2/2 but we'll have to see what she decides. In the mean time, I think I have done about all I can to get ready.
Last week Brett took Isaac to a big brother class at Christ Hospital which proved to be some good daddy/son bonding and a good class for Isaac to learn again about being the big brother. I think Eli will be the one to watch when it comes to keeping her safe.
In other news it is bitter cold here, in the single digits and below zero at night. Looking forward to Spring (if I'm allowed to do that yet) or at the least the 50's they are predicting soon.

2008-01-09T11:54:00.000-08:00

Is it really January??
The weather is dare I say "warm." I use that term loosely since 60's aren't really warm, but it feels warm after 30's! We have been taking advantage of the unseasonably warm weather and have played outside for three days now. Today while playing baseball in the backyard, Isaac told me that he hoped he would beat "the whites" Since he was wearing a Red's hat and using a Red's baseball bat, I guess the whites would logically be a fitting name for a team to play against.
Nesting continues around here and we are at 3.5 weeks to go and counting. I'm looking forward to not being pregnant anymore. I'm not so sure I am ready to be a mother of three. I'm sure it will go better than I expect it will, or at least I can hope that it will.

2008-01-01T13:07:00.000-08:00

Isaac in a box!

"Santa Eli" and "Rudolf Isaac"
Making A Gingerbread house
Super Eli
Christmas morning

Happy New Year everyone!

I can't believe it is January first already. Where did December go?? Well Christmas has come and gone. We enjoyed all the fun activities around here, the zoo, the museum trains, the Duke energy trains, Holiday in Lights, etc. etc. The boys have been having lots of fun with all of their new things and we are thankful for a great 2007. Now that 2008 is here, we look forward to the arrival of our baby sometime in the next 5-7 weeks. Last minute preparations have been underway as I am in complete, full throttle nesting mode. Enjoy some pictures from our holidays and check back often for pictures of the coming little one!

2007-12-06T05:36:00.000-08:00

Our vacation
We have been back for a week now from our trip to NYC and New Jersey. The Macy's parade was amazing, I highly recommend it! Especially if you can order weather like we had, 66 and sunny. All the New Yorkers around us said it has been 40 years since they have had weather like that, which meant even the locals came out in droves. There were people everywhere. The postcards home with Isaac's interpretation of NYC said he saw lots of big big buildings and lots of people.
We enjoyed seeing lots of things in NYC and also enjoyed the balance of staying at a condo in Vernon Valley New Jersey in the mountains. It was both relaxing and exciting. Pictures to come since blogger won't let me post them now.

2007-11-16T11:50:00.000-08:00

It's been a busy busy month for us since my last post. Isaac turned 4, Eli turned 2 and we had a great pirate party with our family and friends. The boys had a great time. I can't believe they are getting so big. We entertained family for a couple of weeks in a row and had a great time trick-or-treating and handing out candy. Isaac went as Captain Hook and Eli as a crocodile. Brett got in the spirit and wore a Peter Pan hat and I wore fairy wings for Tinkerbell. We walked around for a little bit and then Isaac really wanted to "see all the kids costumes and give them all candy." so we went home and did that.

I can't really post to much because my camera has been acting up, but I will post a couple Halloween pictures, a rare moment when the camera was working.

Next week we leave for our vacation. For those who don't know we are leaving for NYC to see the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade next week, then we stay at a mountain resort for 6 days in Vernon Valley New Jersey. We are really looking forward to this much needed break. New York city will be crazy and fun, but the resort with be extremely relaxing and a lot of family togetherness.

Hope everybody has a great Thanksgiving.

2007-10-11T12:45:00.001-07:00

Eli firsts
#1
First of all, I know it isn't a great milestone for many, but I honestly don't think Eli has eaten a vegetable in months. He despises the sight of any one of them. But last night at dinner he ate 2 bites of a green bean, yes I said two bites, not two beans. This was an accomplishment, believe me the kid looks like a string bean and all of his clothes fall off without a belt. I'll take two bites over nothing, and he said "geen" as he was eating it!
#2
Secondly, Eli will be two on the 22nd, and for the first time he called for "mama" from his crib today!!!! I was so so excited. Everybody says you don't want him to say mama because then he won't stop saying it, for now I am delighted with the newness of it!

2007-10-01T08:17:00.000-07:00

Our fall display in the front after the pumpkin patch.

Isaac peeking through at the museum puppet theatre. I just missed him holding up the old professor puppet. He was saying, "and Moses parted the Red sea and obeyed God" to funny.

Eli's latest interest is trains. He loves real trains and the wooden kind. He can even say train now and says it often. Here he is at the train table at the museum.

Last week uncle Bryan was off work one day and came with us to the zoo with my niece Reese. The elephant was behind us, but moved to quick for the camera.

This season's first trip to the pumpkin patch was with Beba and my niece Olivia. My two are the ones munching on the popcorn, thanks Beba.

2007-09-19T18:20:00.001-07:00

Winton Woods by the water...Eli loves to say duck and chase the ducks. Isaac just loves the water and playing by it.

2007-09-19T18:12:00.000-07:00

Thanks for going with us to the zoo on Sunday Beba. We had so much fun feeding the birds, petting and feeding the goats, feeding our faces with ice cream, and riding the train. All things we don't always get to do. We love our light up tigers from the gift shop too! It was a special day.

2007-09-19T12:55:00.001-07:00

I couldn't believe my eyes!
We had our 20 week ultrasound today and much to my surprise and amazement we are having a seemingly completely healthy baby GIRL! She measured at exactly 20 weeks and her estimated due date is February 3rd. Isaac was there for the ultrasound and he wanted to know when she is going to come out. We told him it would not be until after his birthday, Halloween and after Santa comes for a visit. He looked disappointed. He was very excited to be a part of the appointment. Brett's first question for me was is her room going to be pink. My response, there will definately be pink, but some other colors to!

2007-09-13T11:38:00.000-07:00

Preschool started again! Isaac went in the room, found his name and hung his bag on the hook, sat right down on the carpet and started "reading" a book as I snapped his picture and kissed him goodbye. It is so nice to be back in our routine. I often say he is a "creature of habit" and we both need consistancy in his life, it's good for us. Last year I cried when I dropped him off, this year I did a dance of joy for the break!

On the otherhand, my "go with the flow boy" ran around town with me as we did all our errands.

I wonder want the little one to come will be like??

2007-09-12T11:43:00.001-07:00

Two great days...
Reading
Isaac asked me yesterday if he could learn to read. I am so excited that he is excited to learn to read books. We have started the process and he is a fast learner. Hopefully the momentum will continue and he will be reading books in no time.

Laughter and wow, look at those eyes
I can't go anywhere without somebody making a comment on Eli's eyes and his laugh. He has incredible blue/green eyes and a contagious laugh....

2007-09-07T18:54:00.000-07:00

On a pirate ship at the park

The memorial day parade in Vermilion

Pappy, Beba and Eli at Kings Island

On our new sailboat, "Discipleship"

At the Reds game with Livi

Petting the goats at the Cincy Zoo

Michael and Isaac, aka pirate friends

The beach at Cowan Lake

The zoo train with Calvin

Guilted by distant blogging friends (In a good way)

Hopefully all the pictures above, a sample of what we did this summer, will make up for my lack of blogging. Sorry to my faithful friends who blog on a regular basis and only seem to know the major events in our life by my blog. All I can say is, I'll try to be better. And thanks for your continued updates, I am inspired to blog more when I read about what is going on in your lives.

Brett is in DC for a conference so it's just me and the boys this weekend. We went and spent the evening with Livi and Aunt Tamra to give my guys and me change of scenery. Tomorrow will probably hit the indoor exhibis at the zoo. It has been so hot here, we need a change in weather soon. I am looking forward to Fall when the weather changes and we can enjoy all the fun Fall activities. I can't wait to visit the farms and get pumpkins gourds and most of all apple fritters! YUM.

This past week MOPS started back up again and I am on steering committee this year, hospitality. The first meeting went well. I was a little stressed getting ready for it, but I'm glad it went off without a hitch.

Isaac had orientation for preschool which starts up next week, I'm not sure who is more excited for the break, him or me!!! (Yeah for a 2 1/2 hour break)

Our ultrasound is fast approaching, I can't believe I am 19 weeks tom with baby number 3, whom I am just starting to feel the last few days especially when typing at the computer, ironically, I can feel him or her right now as a matter of fact.

In other news, the Larsen's are now owners of a flying scott sailboat, handed down from Uncle John which Brett has proudly been racing on some Sundays when we're not out of town. He has even taken the boys sailing by himself a couple of times, which sounds like a major challenge to me, but I try not to ask to many questions since I get a good break. He also sailed in a Regatta with his dad one weekend which was lots of fun.
Isaac continues to talk for Eli although Eli does get his points across one way or another(mostly by screams and pointing.) Isaac is very interested in talking about the new baby (he thinks it is babies when you ask him, he tells perfect strangers mommy is having a brother and a sister) Thankfully the last sonogram only indicated one baby! sorry buddy. He is also slightly obsessed with pirates at the moment which is what he wants to be for Halloween and what he wants for his birthday theme. I guess Eli is stuck with pirates because since their birthdays are a week apart, I am only having one party again this year.

2007-07-30T11:49:00.000-07:00

It's been a while...but with good reason. I am finally getting over the hump of a first tri-mester. We are due to have our third baby February 3rd. I have had a rough pregnancy this time, with throwing up and 24-7 morning sickness. The last thing I have felt like doing is taking pictures or blogging. Hopefully, now that I am almost over the hump I will post some pictures soon.
As far as other updates, we have been spending a lot of time swimming, playing outside (despite the heat) and enjoying time with family on weekends. More to come soon...

2007-06-06T11:34:00.000-07:00

SOLD
We sold the house and closed mid May, just haven't had time to post. Since then we have been busy spending our money on new landscaping for the front yard as well as odds and ends we have been needing since our spending freeze for the last few months. It has been really nice to have the weight of two house mortgages lifted from us.
The boys are doing good. Isaac is out of school for the summer and we are enjoying the sunshine and warmth. He has been really challenging lately. He is very needy and wants everything. We went to Target today and had to leave because he was saying I want this and that. I was going to buy him some baseballs, but put them back and instead carried out a kicking and screaming preschooler. Whoever said terrible 2's, wasn't at the 3's yet! . Eli is still not talking, which is frustrating, both for him and us. Hopefully the babbles will soon turn into words and he will be able to have less frustrating moments.
Brett's training at his new job is winding down and soon he will have a full caseload. Hopefully this job won't be as bad and as stressful as he has been warned.
I am looking forward to my trip at the end of the month. I am going with my mom and sister-in-law to Florida for 5 days without the boys to a condo by the beach. Thanks to my husband and some friends, I am really looking forward to the vacation and break from the everyday grind.

2007-05-11T13:27:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day to all my girlfriends out there that now have children. You know who you are, you have crossed my path along the way, and now we are all mama's (mommies, moms). Can you believe it? I hope you take time for yourself and enjoy your families, you deserve it, your job is soooo important.
Pancakes anyone?

First Trip to Kings Island for this season!

Isaac's art show at preschool, he's so proud of his train picture!

Riding along in our automobile!

Eli stops to look at all the beautiful tulips at the zoo blooms!

2007-04-30T11:26:00.000-07:00

We are "sale pending"
Enough said!!!!
Praise GOD!

2007-04-06T06:01:00.000-07:00

HAPPY EASTER
Since this week has been so cold and gloomy, we have had to spend a lot of time inside. I was feeling cabin fever again and got a wild hair to make cookies for Isaac's preschool party. We made cookies and his class enjoyed them on Thursday. He was telling me about his party and the visit from the Easter bunny, when he started to get very sad. Out of the blue he said, "mommy my teacher said I can't go to school tomorrow because school is broke." Confused I inquired more. "my teacher said my school is broke." Then it dawned on me that he was trying to say spring break.
Since there is no school today, Friday, we finished frosting the cookies that we started Wednesday. All went well and I was cleaning up the dishes. I got that feeling us moms get, "It's TOO QUIET." As I explored the reason why, I found the boys covered in frosting hiding behind the chair in the family room. There's definately something to be said for a mothers intuition. Happy Easter everybody. Jesus is Risen!

2007-04-06T05:41:00.000-07:00

OPENING DAY

We went to the parade Monday, as we do every year. After riding the metro with our friends, Brett met us there on his lunch break. The boys really had a great time and the weather was beautiful. High 70's and sunny. They actually got a little burnt after I forgot sunblock. The rest of this week has been really cold and gloomy with even a few flurries. Hopefully Spring will come back soon.

2007-03-21T11:57:00.000-07:00

Lots to catch up on...I have had difficulty posting pics with the new blogger. So here are some recent pictures. My niece Reese and Eli at the zoo in the stroller pics. Eli just starting saying "quack quack" for the duck sound yesterday. Finally we are getting some words out of him. Isaac has been talking for him for months, but it's high time he start doing some talking of his own. The picture with Brett is at the place with blow up bouncers. I couldn't get my niece Olivia to turn around for the camera, so you can only see the back of her. The other two pictures are of the St. Patty's parade downtown. Brett was working all weekend, so the boys and I took the metro downtown. While on the bus we ran into our new neighbor will (seven year old that Isaac idolizes) and they sat with us at the parade for a little while. Thankfully Spring and warmer weather are upon us. Hopefully we will have lots more field trips to the zoo and other favorite outdoor spots. Please keep praying for a buyer of our house. Hopefully we will have that huge burden lifted soon.

2007-03-06T18:55:00.000-08:00

A lotta new happening here!
I got bored with the old layout, so I've changed the look. A lot has changed in our little world. The biggest change being our address. If you need it, I can e-mail it to you.
Other changes-Eli is not a baby anymore...he's a toddler with all the good, bad and ugly that come with toddlerhood. He is really getting a unique little personality and he is really a sweet affectionate little boy.
Isaac is still loving preschool. Probably the biggest change for him has been that he is becoming more of an independent little guy. Wants to do everything himself including dressing, going potty and even writing his name by himself!
Brett just changed jobs and will be in training for four months, which is going to be a big change around here. His schedule is more strict and he leaves the house promply at 7:30 to punch the clock on time (something he is not quite used to.)
As for me, not to much has changed, exept for the amount of housework and projects there are to do, which most times I don't mind and I am thankful for more rooms to keep clean :)

2006-12-11T07:51:00.000-08:00

My poor baby...
This past Saturday I was painting the second floor rooms in our new house when I got a call that said Eli has a fever. Then later it was determined that he was wheezing badly so I needed to take him to urgent care. I took him to the Children's Urgent care for his wheezing, thinking they would give him a breathing treatment (which we have been through before, Eli has an inhaler for wheezing...) Well they did two breathing treatments and were not thrilled with his O2 levels and took him to Children's Hospital via ambulance and we were admitted overnight. All this while Brett was at a workshop where he was counseling all weekend. Thanks goes to everbody who took good care of me and good care of Isaac through the ordeal. We were released from Children's Sunday morning at around 11 and have a follow up this afternoon with his doctor. She is recommending seeing an allergist since this is the third attack, but fortunately only the first (hopefully the last) hospitalization for Asthma.
We also closed on our new house Friday. We won't move in until after Christmas though. We want to paint and sand floors before we move in since our house is still on the market.
Well, that about sums up the latest for now...

2006-11-30T12:08:00.000-08:00

BIG NEWS
It's been a while since my last post because we have been in a frenzy around here. Thanksgiving was really nice. We had a good time in Cleveland for a couple of days with Brett's family. Isaac really enjoyed his time with Michael and Katie and Eli are becoming more aquainted too!
The boys are good. Eli is walking now which means he is getting into more and more stuff. So much more to see when you are at walking level instead of crawling. He is so proud of himself and you can see it as his little face lights up.
Now for the BIG NEWS. We are closing on a new house next Friday. This is why I haven't posted in a while because we have been trying to sell our house (ie I have been de-cluttering, cleaning and packing for the past few weeks.) We still haven't sold our house, so we are embarking on unchartered territory for us. It's very scary to think we will own two houses until this one sells. We didn't expect to be moving, but found a great house in the Gaslight, for a great price. It is five bedrooms and twice the square footage of our current house. Also has a driveway and a two car garage, something you don't find everyday in the city. We are really excited but also really anxious. Please pray our house sells quickly in a time when houses are not selling at all, much less quickly.
Well that about sums it up for us...Oh yeah and there is the fact that Christmas is right around the corner UGGH! So much to do, so little time.

2006-11-09T12:17:00.000-08:00

Hocking Hills Cabin Retreat
Brett and I had a little weekend getaway last weekend! It was really wonderful and my mom kept the boys for the weekend so it was that much more relaxing, knowing full well they were in great hands. We stayed in the "Honeymooner" cabin, complete with a wood burning fireplace, full kitchen and hottub on the back covered deck. It was a gorgeous weekend for hiking, so we saw Old Man's Cave and Ash cave. I felt like a honeymooner. Brett was so good to me. He spoiled me since he did all the prep work and all the cooking while we were away. It was really nice to reconnect with him and not hear mommy, mama all day long!

2006-11-01T11:37:00.000-08:00

Trick-or-treat

We had a really good time at trick-or-treat at Aunt Tamra, Uncle Jason and Olivia's house last night. Isaac was really into it. He happily went to house after house and most of the time remembered to say "trick or treat" and thank you. After about the first 1/2 hour he had it so down pat that he said to me, "mom you wait here I can do this by myself." 3 going on 13?? already?? Seriously though, he had such good manners and was such a good boy. He even wanted to give Eli a piece of the fun. Fortunately I was right there to intercept the choking hazard, Eli needless to say was none to thrilled that his brothers generosity was null and void thanks to mommy. It has been a very nice fall season, I am sad the cold weather and lack of sunshine is now settling in. We'll have to find lots of fun indoor activities for the winter.

2006-10-27T18:25:00.000-07:00

The firetruck birthday party was a hit. As you can see the best part of a birthday is ALMOST ALWAYS the cake! Eli really enjoyed his "first" piece of cake. I am told he did in fact get some into his mouth, not just in his hair and all over his face. Isaac has learned in his three years to be a little more neat with his cake, but he enjoyed it just the same. Our boys keep us on our toes, and we love it!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
ISAAC AND ELI!

2006-10-23T12:07:00.000-07:00

The big 1
We had the boys birthday party this past weekend. It was crazy and fun all at the same time. We had a firetruck party complete with fire hats for the kids and a 3D (or was is 3 hours) firetruck cake. Isaac and Eli were surrounded by the love of family and friends as they celebrated their birthdays (AKA the fastest year of my life I think...) I can't believe Eli is one and the year has passed so quickly. Thanks to everybody who came and celebrated with us. For those of you who were not here, I will post pics soon.. I have to wait for the CD copy from my sister-in-law because I was without a camera (thanks to Sony) once again (long story)

2006-10-11T11:44:00.000-07:00

We are so blessed to have a wealth of free and fun things to walk to living so close to a University. One of Isaac's all time favorite things to do is play soccer at the soccer field, although most of the time to players, much to his dismay, are "hogging" their own playing field and we have to play on the grass near the soccer field. This is just as good and a short walk away from our house. This particular day, Eli was content to hang out in the stroller and watch big brother and daddy shoot the ball around.

Fall is upon us!
It's crazy how both of our boys were born in October...Here's Isaac wearing his most favorite color, second only to yellow. I wonder how he decided he loves the color orange. It couldn't have anything to do with the fact that his birthday is only two days shy of Halloween. Eli doesn't have a favorite color yet, but Isaac is trying to sway him into thinking his favorite color is red, since Daddy likes blue, mommy likes green and he likes orange and yellow, Eli has to like red.
We have a really super busy month with birthdays seven days apart. This past weekend we went to Tall stacks, thus the picture with the big boat in the background. We are hopefully going to make it to a pumpkin patch this week and maybe Hallzooween. The big birthday party is next weekend and Isaac still thinks he is having a fire-truck, dinosaur, car birthday. We've (or I've) settled in on fire-trucks since most days he says he wants to be a fireman when he grows up. Although the other day he announced when he grows up he is going to be a fireman and superman. I guess that could be true! I think we need to get him a cape so he can stop running around the house with blankie strapped to his back!

2006-10-04T11:08:00.000-07:00

Wow, October!
I can't believe it is October and it is more than 80 degrees outside. I already "made the switch" in the boys closet from summer to fall/winter clothes and they are wearing shorts today! We have had a busy couple of weeks. Eli has been in and out of the ped. office with what we thought was a bad cold. They diagnosed him with bronchitis and put him on an antibiotic. That wasn't working and he began wheezing. So he was given a breathing treatment in the office and we left with a script for another antibiotic and an inhaler. A few days later he still sounded awful and we went back. The ped. said he sounds "just plain awful" and we left with a script for a chest x-ray and steroids. The chest x-ray was clear and she mentioned Asthma. We have a follow-up today, he sounds great. I'm hoping these Asthmatic symptoms were a temporary 1 time thing and in the past. My baby has been through a lot, I have been through a lot.
This month will be great though, as we celebrate a third and a first birthday, pumpkin ice cream at Graeters, pumpkin farm trips, Hallzooween and all the other fun fall activities. I can't believe this year has come and gone so quickly!

2006-09-15T12:08:00.000-07:00

Petting the Frog and no hitting please...
Isaac started school yesterday! Daddy dropped him off with tote bag and snack in tow. His preschool is a 20 min. drive, so daddy and I are taking turns with the drop off. I thought I might get teary, so daddy took him for his first day. I did get teary, just not in front of Isaac. It was a moment of sadness, but a bigger moment of happiness. Happy that he is growing up to be such a confident, outgoing, fun little boy...and happy that the Lord was providing a much needed break from our daily power struggles. Sad though, that he is growing up so fast. Well, I am happy to report he had a great first two days. His teacher says he is "off to a great start." For those that know Isaac (and his struggles with personal space of others) I was extremely happy for this report. Isaac reported on the first day that they sang "the monkey song" which I found out later was the five little monkeys, ate their snack and pet the frog (real or fiction, I'm still not sure.) He also, in the spirit of being as truthful as he can possibly be, stated that he got in the space of his new friend and that made his friend very sad, he proceded to follow this statement with, I did not hit him though mom. I'm so glad that our "feelings" chart has paid off and that he is already good at telling on himself. His second day (and no, it is not groundhog day)
Mommy-what did you do in preschool today?
Isaac-sang the monkey song
mommy-great, did you do anything else?
Isaac-pet the frog
Mommy-wow, tell me more about the frog...
Isaac-it's a nice frog
Mommy-is the frog real or pretend
Isaac-it's real, no...it's pretend
Mommy-(confused about the frog still) did you do anything else fun at school today.
Isaac-I didn't hit anybody today mommy, and I colored a dog orange, I like dogs.
Mommy-Sounds like you had a great day
Isaac-can I have a snack?
He's finished talking, we have been working on no hitting and I'm still confused about the class frog at preschool. Thank goodness it's Friday!

2006-09-06T13:33:00.000-07:00

Preschool is coming...
We have Isaac's orientation for preschool this Friday. He can't wait for school to start. He has been talking about school all summer. Thank goodness he doesn't need to be potty trained to go, since he decided going on the potty was not for him (still). Hopefully he will change his mind soon. Eli is on the move and enjoying it like crazy. He loves that he can move around freely now. Isaac doesn't like that Eli can get his toys...Ugh, sibling rivalry begins already.
Well, I can't believe next month my boys will be 1 and 3. I'm already starting to plan their little party. It's going to be a vehicle party since Isaac loves cars, trucks, tractors, anything with wheels. Isaac is actually excited about sharing his birthday with Eli. I guess as long as they both get presents, it will be ok with him. And I'm ok with only hosting one party! More energy and cost effective.

2006-08-17T11:44:00.000-07:00

Eli's baby dedication was this past Sunday. It was a really nice celebration of God's hand in his life and ours. He is such a unique precious gift that fills our family with joy. Isaac was a great big brother and let Eli have the spotlight for one day! Thanks to everybody who came and celebrated with us.
Isaac said something yesterday that was so sweet, I had to share...We were passing Good Sam hospital on our way to a P&G diaper study, when he announced Mommy that is where I was born! Then he so sweetly said, "Jesus was with me when I was born mama, and daddy was there too! Then he continued on to say, Jesus is with me now too mom.
Mothering is such a gift that I sometimes take for granted when I am sleep deprived. Eli, after almost 10 months of life, finally got two teeth today (only after I spent a twenty dollar co-pay to find out it wasn't an ear infection.) So today we celebrate the little things in life, like maybe I'll get some extra zzz's now that those bottom teeth have broke through, at least until he gets the top two!

2006-08-10T12:10:00.000-07:00

Long time, no blog..
It's been a while since I have added to my blogspot...in essence, life has been crazy busy. In the past month Brett and I celebrated 8 years together, he celebrated a birthday, Eli learned crawling and Isaac learned regression! We thought Isaac was potty trained, but I guess two weeks of being trained led to us being trained (trained in giving stickers, prizes and praise for even the slightest inclining he might stop regressing.) So we (I mean he) is back in pull-ups and now we are going with the method of him telling us when he has to go, instead of us telling him and we will see where the whole thing goes. He is going to preschool starting this fall, doesn't have to be trained though. The ped informs me that most "strong-willed" or "spirited" children don't like to be outdone by peers and will train once school starts. Here's to peer pressure for positive things like pee pee and poo poo on the potty!
Eli is mobile...yes I said Eli is mobile. For the first couple of days he was content to crawl slowly and just explore gradually. Well sadly (for us not him!) he has graduated to getting into everything in sight and not in sight too! He is getting so big, I can hardly believe he is going to be 10 months and will soon be turning 1 and then walking, and the list goes on...This weekend we are finally having his baby dedication. So we will have a house full of family on Sunday and then again in a couple of months for his birthday and Isaac's too. Hopefully they won't mind sharing the day since their birthdays are only a week apart.
Well, I think that puts me up to date...speaking of dates, Brett and I had a tennis date last night, thanks to our friends the Sloans for watching the boys we were able to play. If I get more practice in, maybe I will eventually win more than one game against him...

2006-07-06T12:17:00.000-07:00

Florida in our own backyard...Well not really our backyard, but close. Today we went the the zoo. This is usually a weekly field trip for the boys and myself. Today we took aunt Jo Jo and baby Reese with us. We have never really taken the path that leads us to the flamingos and Zebras. But today that's where Isaac wanted to go. It was a nice breezy day, great relief from the blazing hot sun and no breeze that we have become accustomed to. I really enjoy seeing things through a child's eyes and I am really thankful for God blessing me with two beautiful little boys to love and teach.

2006-07-02T20:11:00.000-07:00

This week has been lots of fun. Daddy was home for the whole week and we got to see lots of fun things. We saw the elephants get a bath, took a ride in a bike trailer along the river, rode a paddle boat (above pics), went swimming, fed some ducks and lots more. The boys are getting so big and doing so many new things. Potty training for Isaac, rolling over and over and over and trying to crawl, eating new foods like peas and cheese for Eli. 8 months goes sooo quickly I can't believe it. It is nice to spend quality time with family and friends. We have done a lot of that in the last few days.

2006-06-14T13:54:00.000-07:00

Eli, 7 months!

Isaac Loves to paint with water colors, I think
we might have a budding artist on our hands...which
we all know mommy wouldn't mind!

Daddy and Eli sitting on the porch..

2006-06-12T11:59:00.000-07:00

Our most recent family photo was Easter. Our digital camera is being fixed by Sony, so we won't be posting any pictures for a little while. Please check back for lots of updates and hopefully pictures sooner than later. In the meantime, enjoy the pic of our newest family member
Reese Taylor Dunbar. Isaac is still recovering from the shock that Aunt Jo Jo and Uncle Bryan didn't have a boy, but I think he is slowly coming to grips.

2006-06-12T09:07:00.000-07:00

Our new niece, Reese Taylor was born at 11:02 on June 11. She was 7 lb 4 oz and 19 3/4" long!

Both mom and baby are doing great!

Brett Kristie Isaac and Eli

2006-06-11T09:53:00.000-07:00

The Larsen family blog