Peterson Family Bees Blog

Christmastime with the Fords

2011-12-26T20:58:00.002-06:00

The Ford family came to our house this year for Christmas Eve dinner. We usually alternate between Mom & Bill's, Clint & Michelle's, Lorna & Steve's, and before Julie moved we would go to her house for dinner. At Thanksgiving dinner, we decided to host the dinner this year. It was so much fun to have everyone here. The kiddos could all play in the basement and be as rowdy as they wanted.

Shyanne made a festive peppermint bowl that Paige & Cody found tasty.

Sweet boy!

Heath was excited about his dinosaurs

Silly boy

This little tin can guy turned out really cute

Clint and Michelle

Chillin'

Love Clint's reaction to the CSI kit

Caleb's abstract art

Cody's koi pond for Grandma

Papaw was happy to get his port

Shyanne and Caleb working hard to build the tin can robot

It was so nice to spend Christmas Eve with my family here in Benton. The boys had so much fun with Paige and Heath. Shy, thanks for spending time with Caleb. He was building something else tonight and said he needed cousin Shy to come over to help. Cody of course loved the attention too. Love you guys!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-26T20:44:00.001-06:00

Caleb created this at school

Visit with Santa at the park

Uncle Kev made Grinch Eye cookies

Making yummy mint cookie/brownies

Kevin not too excited to have the pitiful Jas in his lap

Kevin came to spend Christmas week with us. We love to have him with us for the holidays. Spending time with the nephews and creating fun, festive activities for them. He is so creative. Uncle Kevin had a scavenger hunt every night. The boys had to solve a puzzle or figure out the holiday riddle leading to each different Christmas item, till they came to the prize. The boys loved it!

New ornaments

Christmas morning-Santa came!

Cody is now reading some chapter books and loves comic style, like this Star Wars series

Rockin' new headphones

19 year old Jasmine, checking out the Christmas action

Rosey excited about her new chew toy

Silly uncle, the neck pillow goes the other way

Angry Birds!

Kev's new sleeping bag for cold weather camping

Now he needs some tools for his toolbox

The boys woke up at 5am and were so excited that Santa came. They actually took their time opening presents and savoring each present. They even stopped to put together a small lego set. I think unwrapping took a couple of hours because they would play in between. It was fun to watch their excitement. Glad they didn't rip through everything quickly because it made the morning last longer. Ben made a delicious egg casserole, then the big kids opened their presents while the boys played. After lunch, we packed up and headed for more festivities.

Christmastime with the Peterson's

2011-12-26T20:33:00.000-06:00

We went to Bowling Green on Christmas day to celebrate with the Peterson family. We got a few family pics. Look how much all the kiddos have grown this past year.

Cody's acrylic sunflower painting

Ben excited about his game

Katie, the ghost hunter.

Caleb was up for the "Big Present" of the year from Memaw and Pepaw. His two older cousins got laptops the past couple of years. They did a good job of tricking him this year. First he opened a box of clothes, then the big box was a laptop box, with another wrapped box inside it. Inside he found his iPad 2. Thanks Memaw and Pepaw!

Caleb excited about his iPad

Makinna sweetly opening her presents

Crazy Cody

Abbi, the Penguin Girl

The cousins were pretty wound up after opening presents, so the adults all stayed upstairs and let them burn off some energy. They had fun playing, then we all ate some yummy soup and sandwiches, then it was playtime for the rest of the afternoon. Great visit! But as Lori said, I am looking forward to some downtime this week. The past few weeks have been so busy with holiday parties and get togethers. I love Christmas and visiting with family, but now I am ready to relax and do nothing.

Thanks Be Given to my Family

2011-12-01T15:36:00.001-06:00

We had a fantastic Thanksgiving and pre-weekend. We spent lots of family time. The weekend before Turkey Day, we went to Bowling Green to see the Peterson fam. Donna and Dave prepared a scrumptious feast and we had a terrific time with our family. We visited with Granny, Grandpa, Greg, Jim, Lori, cousin Ben, Katie, Makinna, and Abbi. They even invited Kevin over for the meal. We also went to visit Great-Papaw Howard for awhile. He told us some great stories, while the boys did flips through his living room for entertainment.

The boys had so much fun with their cousins

Grand-dog came to visit as well

Legos are always a favorite

Great Papaw with his boys

We went to Mom's for Thanksgiving weekend to have Thanksgiving with the Ford Family.

Kev preparing us a pre-Thanksgiving pizza (wearing his old Pizza Hut apron!)

Ferocious Warriors

Uncle Kev showing the boys his favorite spots in the woods behind Mom's house

Kevin took the boys behind the house to explore the woods and creek. Showing them fun stuff that he did as a boy. Although we live in the country, my kids are city boys. Caleb is perfectly happy to sit indoors vegging out in front of his game system, the tv, or a book. Being outside is not his thing. He enjoys it once we make him go out, but he is back inside as soon as he can. Now Cody loves it outside, the dirtier the better but he is totally a "follower" and will not play outside by himself. That is so different from Kevin and I. We used to spend the whole day out in the woods or in the creek, exploring, playing, finding things, using our imaginations. My boys have no clue how to go outside, explore, and have fun in the woods without direction. Kev had to go with them and guide thier fun.

Cody is always the helper

We also chose this weekend to begin the guest bathroom remodel for Mom and Bill for Christmas. We chose a beautiful silvery blue for the bathroom. Installed new light fixtures, cabinet knobs, faucet, towel racks, and shower rod. It looks fantastic already!

Cody helping with the K&K rolls

Bathroom remodel finished product

Kevin and I also did some Black Friday shopping. We mainly go to people watch and perhaps come across a few bargains. We do NOT go out early and stand in line for the big ticket items or wait for hours in long lines. I have to say it was the easiest Black Friday shopping year. The main stores opened 10pm-midnight for all the big ticket crazy shoppers. That got rid of the huge crowds and long lines for those of us that just want to check out the stores. It was a good weekend. Yummy food and family time is always a welcoming for this time of year.

Class Reunion and Family Time

2011-10-02T21:50:00.001-05:00

This weekend we went to Henderson for my 20 year class reunion. Hard to believe that it has been that long! Yep, class of 1991. The reunion dinner was not until Saturday night. So Saturday afternoon, the boys and I spent time with Mom and Kev. We decided to take the boys to a corn maze. We found one across town. Cate's Farm had a pumpkin patch and corn maze. We soon found out that the maze was a very challenging one.

We got turned around and decided the map was not helping us at all. We had a good time anyways and got a bit "corny".

Pumpkin bean bag toss

Cody loved the sandbox full of corn. Talk about corn in every crevice!

They also had a hayride past the huge pumpkin patch. I have never seen such an enormous pumpkin patch full of several different varieties of pumpkins. The boys had so much fun selecting their pumpkin.

That night we went to my reunion. I met up with Wendi and Natalie, my best buds from highschool. Saw several classmates that I had not seen since graduation from highschool or since my years at WKU. Caught up on lives, children, work experience, etc. It was nice to see everyone, but there were many that didn't come, that I had hoped to see. It is amazing how much things can change over 20 years, also amazing how many people haven't changed a single bit, nuff said.

Anyone for S'mores?

2011-09-25T12:50:00.025-05:00

This weekend we met Mom and Bill at Canal Campground on Kentucky Lake. Kevin met us there and tent camped with us in a nice wooded site. Mom and Bill stayed in their camper around the corner right on the lake. Friday night was perfect weather and we cooked hot dogs and hamburgers over the fire. The boys love playing on the sandy beach and skipping rocks. We brought their bikes, so they had fun riding between our sites. When it got dark, we made S'mores and toasted marshmallows. Yummy!

Saturday morning we woke to a little drizzly rain, but we have a very good leakproof tent and we had a canopy up over our picnic table.

Ben made us eggs and bacon on his camper grill and I made the best biscuits over the fire in our camping oven. After we got our bellies full, we headed to Land Between the Lakes. It turned into a gorgeous day, so we decided to take advantage of it. We went to the Nature Center and toured the wildlife area out back. The boys loved the owls, bald eagle, coyotes, wolves, and especially the bobcat. It just happened to be "free weekend" at LBL. So we also went through the Elk and Bison Prarie. Unfortunately they were hiding, so we only saw the back of one bison in a far field. When we got back, mom, Kevin, the boys, and I hiked over to the opposite side of the campsite to the boat dock and pier. The boys rode their bikes and kept calling us slow pokes.

Saturday night was another gorgeous night for a campfire. The boys played football and soccer on the beach with Ben.

We had burgers, steaks, baked potatoes, and green beans for dinner, then of course the boys wanted more S'mores for dessert.

Late Saturday night we had light showers off and on. But we were toasty warm and dry in our tents and slept like babies with the sound of rain.

Ben gave Caleb his first pocket knife. Caleb widdled sticks the whole weekend.

We need some more firewood, Kev!

More Widdling

Crazy Uncle with the Silly Boys

We awoke Sunday morning to heavier rainfall and when we got a pause in the weather, we quickly packed everything up before rain started again. It was a terrific weekend with the family! Can't wait to go again!

September Activities

2011-09-25T12:19:00.003-05:00

We went to Family Day at the park a couple of weekends ago. The boys got to ride horses, there was a petting zoo, and bouncy houses. They also got free cotton candy and slushies. Yum!

At Ben's conference in Cincinatti last week he got to go to a Reds and Cubs game. Ben a die hard Cubs fan was harassed by the Reds mascot during the game. Pretty funny! The mascot stole his Cubs hat and wiped his butt and armpits with it!!!!

Gorgeous Weather for a Hike

2011-09-05T19:45:00.000-05:00

The beginning of Labor Day weekend was extremely hot (upper 90's) and humid, then a cold front came through and today was low 70's. It felt like a crisp fall day. The boys wore blue jeans for the first time since spring. We decided it was a perfect day to go for a hike at the lake. We headed to Land Between the Lakes and hiked around Hematite Lake.

Hiking with Uncle

Checking out the huge lily pads

The boys have to keep Uncle Kev in line

They love their Uncle Kevin

Crazy boys!

My little tree hugger

So glad Kevin was still visiting, so he could come with us before he headed home.

Save Mama before she falls off the cliff!

Who is that peeping from behind the tree?

A doe munching on grass on our way out

They have had a long weekend!

7 Years Old

2011-09-05T19:21:00.000-05:00

Cody turned 7 years old this weekend. It is so hard to believe that my little buddy is growing up so fast. We had his birthday party here at the house. Uncle Kevin came to spend the long weekend with us. Memaw and Peepaw came for Cody's special day and brought Katie, Makinna, and Abbi. The Petitts, Atnips, and Gottmans all came to join in on the festivities. He had a blast playing with his buddies and cousins all afternoon. They barely took a break to eat cake and open presents. It was a fun afternoon hanging out with friends and family.

iPod Shuffle, what he wanted most of all. Those boys love music

Cody loves books, especially ones with CD's to listen to at bedtime

Kevin gave him Scrabble. He wanted the one that spins.

Game time!

TKD Belt Test Fall 2011

2011-08-20T20:11:00.000-05:00

The boys graduated to another belt level.

Break that board, Cody.

I love my brother!

Moving to green belt

Caleb grappelling with Inst Jason

Recreation of the kick that Caleb actually did early. Left a huge hematoma on Inst Jason's chest

Moving to brown belt

First Day of School

2011-08-20T19:48:00.000-05:00

The boys started back to school. Caleb is now a 4th grader and Cody a 1st grader!!! They were glad to get back and see their friends. I enjoyed the summer off with them and it was hard to go back to work, but I admit now that it is nice to be back in the routine. The boys like their new teachers and seem to be doing well.

San Diego Business and Pleasure

2011-07-26T21:34:00.000-05:00

Having the summer off, certainly has its advantages. In July, I travelled with Ben to San Diego. He had a conference, so his trip was business. His conference was at the convention center downtown, so we stayed at the Marriott on the bay. It was a gorgeous hotel with a fabulous view of San Diego Bay. We were right across from the Gaslamp District downtown, so I explored the area's shopping and eats. Here is our view of the marina at the bay.

I visited the San Diego Zoo. Didn't even get to see the whole thing because it was so huge. Here is one of the many koalas that they have on loan from all over the world.

The Panda exhibit was under construction, but we still got to watch the male Panda. They have 3 Pandas, but the female and youngster born in 2009 were taking a break from the paparazzi that day. Here is Gao Gao trying to reach some bamboo.

My cousin, Jason, who lives in San Diego, picked me up for a local tour of the area. We headed to La Jolla for some snorkeling in the chilly Pacific.

Didn't see alot of fish, but there were seals that took refuge on the rocks in the cove along the cliffs. The scenery was beautiful and I had a fabulous time visiting with Jason. He took me to a cool Mexican restaurant, that was scrumptious and I got a taste of California as we drove around.

Ben got to visit Midway Aircraft Carrier one afternoon. Across the bay, North Island Naval Complex is where naval ships dock for a little r&r, before they are sent off on their next mission.

Love you, cuz! Thanks for taking the day off to hang with me and you are right...you are a pathetic tour guide ;-) I had more fun, just being spontaneous though! Memaw and Peepaw/Jim and Lori~thanks so much for having the boys. They had so much fun with you and their cousins. You guys are great!!

Cayman Islands

2011-07-26T16:23:00.000-05:00

This summer we decided to take a vacation with our best buds, Christy and Paul. Both of us will be celebrating 15 year anniversaries this year, so we decided we wanted to go tropical. We flew to Grand Cayman Island and stayed on the beautiful island in the Caribbean Sea with calm turquoise waters. The boys stayed behind with grandparents and uncle (thanks mom and Kev)!

We were pretty much beach bums all week- no kiddos, no worries.

We went to a sea turtle farm one day. They had hundreds of sea turtles from tiny babies to huge turtles. They raise and release them, as well as providing food for the locals to prevent poaching. Apparently sea turtles are a favorite on the menu for the locals.

We also visited a town called Hell. It was pretty much just a spot on the map, but the strange landscape behind us is eerie, kind of Hellish-looking. Looked like volcanic rock to me, but it apparently is limestone formations that were pushed up into jagged points. The whole island is full of this stuff, no wonder they are unable to grow produce.

One evening the guys, surprised Christy and I, by booking a pirate sunset dinner cruise. It was a lot of fun and the food was a taste of authentic island eats, topped off with Rum Cake. Yummy!!!

We rented a little car, so that we could drive around the island. Driving was quite the challenge because the steering wheel was on the right hand side and you drove on the left side of the road. To make it even more confusing the windshield wipers and turn signal were opposite. Tourist vehicles had white license plates versus the yellow plate of locals, so you knew to steer clear of the person turning with his windshield wipers :-) That would be us most of the time. Ben really enjoyed being a left side of the road driver and when we got home, he was still confusing his windshield wipers and turn signal. But driving around, gave us a chance to check out the rest of the island, like the blow-holes below.

Chickens were as plentiful as the locals. You could hear them crowing at all hours of the day and they ran down the sidewalks of the shopping district, Georgetown, like they owned the place. This guy was hanging out in front of KFC, perhaps looking for a chance for a jailbreak.

Snorkeling became one of our favorite past-times and we liked exploring different beaches to see which one had the best snorkeling. Stingrays and conch were plentiful at Rum Point. Other beaches had lots of spiny sea urchins, some as huge as a volleyball. The salinity of the ocean water there made us so bouyant that you could snorkel for a couple of hours effortlessly. Christy and I loved to just lie on our backs and float in the calm water, there were no waves washing in like Florida, so you could float forever.

One evening, we took a night-time kayaking ecotour into a magical bay to witness bioluminescence in the water. As we entered the bay, we noticed streaks of blue glowing from where our oars dipped into the water. The deeper we entered the brighter the bioluminescence with every encounter of movement in the water. If you dipped your hand in, you poured sparkles of glowing stars out of your hand. Swirling your hand or foot in the water caused glowing clouds of billowing blue. You felt as if you were part of the movie, Avatar or that you had warped to another world. It was absolutely breathtaking. The bioluminescence is caused by marine plankton called dinoflagellates and this phenomenon is only found in about 10 areas of the world where the conditions are just right. Red mangroves, high light levels, and little water movement out of the bay are the factors behind the remarkable chemical reaction.

We went to Queen Elizabeth II Botanical Gardens, where gorgeous native flowers grew. Queen Elizabeth, because remember this is a British island. Hail the Queen! It was also a refuge for the blue iguanas. Iguanas and several species of lizards are another common site everywhere that you went on the island.

The last day on Cayman, we took a jet ski tour across the sea to Stingray City. We got out and swam with the stingrays and then went snorkeling over a beautiful colorful reef. Swimming with the stingrays was another highlight of the trip. These curious creatures swam right up next to you or between our legs rubbing their wings up against to check us out as they passed by. They felt rubbery and smooth, kind of like a catfish, not slimy at all though. They were incredibly docile and we got a chance to feed them, give them a kiss, and get a stringray massage. Our tour guide even picked his teeth with one of the stingrays stinger. He told us the difference between these "friendly" stingrays and "wild" stingrays that you should not provoke. We noticed they are curious in the wild too, when we saw them snorkeling,they would turn in the sand to check out the strange masked creatures. We learned they do not mean to cause any harm to humans.

Back to BlogWorld

2011-07-26T10:50:00.000-05:00

Sorry to have left you, fellow blog readers. I have had a busy year with my new position teaching. I also have been thoroughly enjoying having my first summer off with the boys. It has been great to spend so much time with them. They joined the Marshall County swim team, which spanned children Kindergarten age through high school. They learned the correct swim strokes and had great fun. Every week since June, they had swim meets against local swim teams. Cody was usually the only 6 year old boy competing, so he would get first place ribbons at almost all the meets. This would of course, earn many points for our team. They ended the season undefeated!

Christy Turns Fabulously 40!!

2011-01-17T21:56:00.000-06:00

Christy turned 4-0 last weekend. Yes, you heard me correctly...FORTY! Of course we had to show her our love at work =)

This is Christy's office door.

Here are the Over the Hill goodies we collected for her. Note the inflatable potty chair at her desk.

Looking Fabulous at 40!

Her co-workers took her out to lunch.

Hmm...a little birdy must have told them it was your birthday!

Happy Birthday, Christy! I hope I look as Fabulous when I turn 40 in ten years ;-)

Love You Girl!!!

Cody's Last Basketball Game

2011-01-17T20:19:00.000-06:00

Cody played basketball for the first time. It was a basic Kindergarten 3 on 3 team. Ben was the Assistant Coach for his team. I think Ben will hold out several seasons before trying that again. They were much too young to pay attention or understand the concepts of basketball. It was pretty much one kid dribbles down the court and tries to make a goal, then a kid on the next team gets a turn at dribbling down the court to try for a goal. Lots of walking with the ball, tripping with the ball, scrambling for the ball when it missed, etc. But Cody had fun and got to try it out. Here is a video of clips from his last game. Cody is wearing a white t-shirt and orange shorts.

Peterson Family Christmas

2010-12-29T12:43:00.000-06:00

After playtime in the snow Christmas morning, we headed to Bowling Green. The boys brought a few of their new toys to play with, but as usual Memaw's legos always win over as the favorite for all the kids. We rested up from the excitement of the morning and just had a relaxing evening visiting with Memaw and Peepaw.

Cody reading the funnies, just like his Daddy used to do.

The next morning, Donna had a scrumptious brunch for the family. Jim, Lori and the kiddos came in to partake of the festivities. We filled our tummies, then headed downstairs for demolition of the gift wrap.

Ben and Abbi

Cody is very excited about his own Paper Jam.

Cool microscope slides for Mama's old microscope

Makinna got MouseTrap

Yay! 20 Questions

Finally I got Super Scribblenauts!!! No wonder Santa didn't get it!

Caleb is sprouting bunny ears :-)

What did you get Katie?

I think she is happy with her gift

Katie was grandchild of the year for the "Special Gift"

Adding up the money towards his iPod Touch

The kids were all very pleased with their gifts. Then they decided it was time to bundle up and try out the Peterson Mega Hill. We had all heard stories of the great sledding Ben, Jim, Dave, and Donna experienced in the past on the super slope out back. The grandkids all wanted to try it out for themselves to see if it lived up to their expectations. It sure did!

Caleb trying out the hill

Katie looks like a little snow bunny

Cody, Ben, and Abbi ready for action

Abbi says hang on tight Makinna

Daddy coming back for another ride

Ben and Mama had a terrific slide and crash landing into each other

Brotherly love

Memaw got into the sledding action

Having fun with the grandkids

When we got home our snowman was doing yoga

We had a lot of fun sledding and playing with the cousins. Thanks for all the gifts and yummy treats

White Christmas

2010-12-28T15:06:00.000-06:00

My Snowbuddy!

After we opened Christmas presents, we couldn't resist hitting our slope for some Christmas sledding. The snow was perfect for sledding and throwing snowballs. It was gorgeous!

Kevin sledding with iPhone in hand :)

Rosey enjoying the snow, although she disliked the snowballs that attached to her furry paws and hind quarters

Wipe out by Cody

Oh what fun it is to ride...

Caleb wipes out

I love my bubby!

Cody's got a good throw

Climbing back up the hill for another run

Here comes Daddy to kick the sledding up a notch

Mama checking out the action

My Bees!

The snow men

Cherry tomatoe eyes, an acorn nose, & a peg pipe make a perfect snowman

Yeah, she's a little leafy, she likes to be all natural.

Santa Came!

2010-12-28T14:29:00.000-06:00

Christmas morning I was woken at 2:40 AM, by giggling of two excited little boys and shuffling of little feet. Santa doesn't wrap his presents, so the boys see them as soon as they come into the living room. I waited a bit to see if they were going to come get us, as they usually do, but they didn't. I realized Caleb probably knew what time it was and was afraid to wake us so early. I tiptoed downstairs and Cody peeped up at me and giggled "Oops! Did you hear me laughing." Then they showed us all of Santa's gifts. They were bubbling over with excitement. We told them it was okay to play with the Santa gifts for a few minutes, but we were going to go back to bed in a little while and we will open the rest of the presents later. They were fine with that and stayed up for about an hour, before finally settling down about 4 AM.

Notice the time behind Mr. Slinky

Daddy had to check out the Paper Jam, even though we still had heavy sleepers in the wee morning hours.

Santa brought more Wii games!

We probably got another inch of snow through the night. Adding up to almost 4 inches. It was a beautiful Winter Wonderland outside. The trees and ground were covered. Little animal tracks ran across the yard, but besides that it was totally undisturbed. This is definitely the first White Christmas in a long time.

Daddy's famous 'Buttons and Bowknots'

Daddy made homemade doughnuts in the shape of Christmas trees, Santas, presents, and candy canes. He always makes a special yummy breakfast Christmas morning. Caleb stumbled back down around 7:30 AM, and smiled on the stairs saying, "Buttons and Bowknots"! Smelling one of his favorite breakfast treats.

"You're going to shoot your eye out!"

Caleb was told several years ago that he couldn't have a bb gun or go hunting until he was 8 years old. This past hunting season, he went hunting with daddy for the first time. And for Christmas he got his first bb gun. He was so excited.

Showing off art supplies from Uncle Kevin

I finally get my own robe.

Create Lizards Kit from Papaw and Mamaw Howard

Papaw and Mamaw Howard sent Caleb the monster nerf gun that he has been wanting

Bear Kevin is ready for anything

Not the evil clown head!

Motorcycle parts for Daddy

Mama got a lounging raft for our pool from Dad and Lori

Kevin gave me beautiful pictures of my Howard grandparents (June and Burrell)

It was nice to have Bill and Mom here Christmas morning. They had never seen the boys in their bubbly Christmas morning excitement. Now that the presents are opened, the boys were ready to hit the snow!

Christmas Eve

2010-12-28T13:13:00.000-06:00

Caleb and Kevin building a lego alligator.

Uncle Kevin always spends Christmas with us and this year he was able to come 3 days before Christmas. I am so lucky to now be off as well, with my new teaching job at the community college. So I was also off with the boys for Christmas break. Grandmom and Papaw Ford also came for Christmas Eve. They usually stay in Henderson but since we already had our family Christmas and dinner last weekend, they thought it would be nice to come visit us.

Christmas Eve night we let the boys open a present early. They opened gifts that they got each other.

Cody was so excited about his diving gloves for the swimming pool.

They also opened gifts from Aunt Sandy & Uncle Jim.

Around 4pm, snow began to fall. The big flakes quickly began to accumulate. We ended up with almost 3 inches that night. Grandmom and Papaw decided they better not risk driving and they spent the night too. Before going to bed, the boys sprinkled Reindeer Food (oats and glitter) on the lawn and set out a plate of cookies for Santa.

They tiptoed out in the snow in their PJ's and looked so cute carefully sprinkling the Reindeer food as it snowed down on them. They were so excited they didn't even complain about the cold.

The moon on the breast of the new fallen snow gave a luster of midday to objects below...

"The children were nested all snug in their beds, while visions of sugarplums danced in their heads"

Christmas Cookie Tradition

2010-12-28T12:42:00.000-06:00

My mom always made homemade cookies and candy for Christmas. As far back as I can remember, my brother and I were always in the kitchen helping her bake and decorate cookies at Christmas time. I began the same Christmas tradition with my boys several years ago. Usually my mom makes gingerbread boys and the boys love to help her decorate them. I never had a gingerbread cookie cutter. I always made Christmas trees, Santas, reindeer, angels, stars, etc. But Cody insisted that I get a gingerbread man this year, so we could make our own gingerbread cookies. Grandmom mailed Cody a new gingerbread cookie cutter early in December, so we could put him to use.

Gingerbread cyclops and bomb mishaps. That's what you get with boys :)

Oh no, don't eat my head!

Our neighbor brought us over some non-decorated sugar cookies before we had a chance to bake our own. She even provided icing for a fun Christmas project for the boys.

Yum! Icing is Caleb's favorite.

The boys think it isn't Christmas without helping Mama stir the dough and decorate the cookies. It is always so much fun and they get so creative.

School Christmas Program

2010-12-23T09:27:00.011-06:00

Last week the boys had their Christmas Program at school. K-2 had the early morning program. Each class dressed in a certain Christmas theme (reindeer, snowmen, and Santas). Cody's class were snowmen and wore cute little snowmen hats. Each class got to go on stage and sing a song. Cody was a "bell ringer" during his song. Sorry the video begins a little shaky, I was trying to figure out how to zoom in on him.

Caleb's program was in the afternoon. It was a Christmas program about Santa being "Green" (for the environment). Everyone wore green and they sang several cute songs with hand motions to go along. Caleb was on the other side of the gym, so I didn't get a picture of him during his program. But I did get a couple of cute pics of him with some boys in his class.

Christmas Letter

2010-12-22T15:15:00.001-06:00

At school, Cody wrote a letter to Santa telling why he believes he deserves the first gift of Christmas and describing how he shows others he is good or nice. I love how they did not spell the words for him and he wrote as he sounded out the words. Can you read what he wrote?

Translation of Cody's letter in case you couldn't decipher: "I draw the best pictures." and "I help my mom do the dishes." :-)

Ford Family Christmas

2010-12-22T15:12:00.003-06:00

This past weekend Lorna hosted Ford Family Christmas at her house.

Caleb, Paige, Heath, and Cody had fun playing legos together.

We had lots of great food and plenty of desserts.

Heath is getting so big, it is hard to believe that he will already be turning 2 in January!

Shy with her precious little chihuahua, Munchkin.

Caleb was excited to get some more Harry Potter books from Aunt Lorna and Grandmom. Aunt Lorna and Uncle Steve loaded him up with several chapter books. He has already started reading a new series. Caleb also got a cool animal origami art kit from Uncle Clint and Aunt Michelle and a new Lego 3 in 1 Creator that you can build an alligator, shark, and t-rex from the same kit.

Cody got a cool animal book series from Grandmom, as well as Lego Creationary (both of which we have spent lots of time playing and reading). He got Moon Dough from Aunt Lorna and Uncle Steve. He has loved making pizzas with it. That is some cool feeling stuff and it comes off the carpet much easier than regular playdough! Cody got Rock Painting from Uncle Clint and Aunt Michelle. He has already painted his rocks and shared with the neighbor girl. Then he and Sareena went down to the creek and collected more rocks to paint as well. I think we have a new art medium.

Since Mom didn't have a nice picture of her parent's wedding day, I enlarged one for her. I also enlarged some cool younger pictures of Marshall and Betty from their honeymoon. Kevin made a beautiful picture book of old pictures from Mom's childhood, her parents, siblings, and the old farmhouse. We didn't even coordinate, but were thinking on the same wavelength for Christmas this year. I'm sure it still feels odd to not go up to Louisville to see her dad during the holidays. I know I miss it. I remember so many wonderful Christmas's with Grandmama and Grandaddy.

Cody painting his rocks.

What do you have there Caleb? A lego banana?

Cody puts the final touches on Caleb's T-Rex.

Thanks for a fantastic Christmas...Ford Family! It was fun and delicious!!!

Caleb Moves up to Advanced TKD Class

2010-12-17T18:56:00.001-06:00

Caleb graduated to the upper level TKD class "Karate Kidz", this past weekend. He is now a green belt and will proceed upward from here to black belt. We are so proud of his progress in Tae Kwon Do. Cody is so excited for him that after much pondering and wavering over the past year, he is now ready to jump in and begin TKD himself. Cody began this week as a beginner in Future Kidz.

Cody says, "Me Chinese, me play joke."

Caleb taking down the black belt.

Don't mess with the master!

Concentration

Way to go Green Belt!

Turkey Weekend

2010-11-28T20:19:00.008-06:00

We woke up Thanksgiving morning to two little bluebirds perched on the railing outside of our kitchen window. They were soaking up the sunshine on a blustery cold morning. The beautiful little birds hung out there for over 30 minutes. Cody dressed up as a little Indian boy for school. Right down to the turkey feather in his head band. He made this shirt last year for preschool Thanksgiving party, so we were able to recycle this year.

This year we hosted Thanksgiving dinner for the Peterson Family at our house. I agreed to cook the turkey and dressing (neither of which I had ever done before). We had our 4, Jim, Lori, and their 3 girls, Dave, Donna, Granny, Grandpa, Aunt Francis, and Uncle Jerry. It was wonderful! My first oven baked turkey turned out perfect- thanks to my Grandmama's turkey recipe passed down by mom. I also used her stuffing recipe, with a twist from a lady at work whose grandma made stuffing balls every Thanksgiving. They turned out delicious! I know my Grandmama was smiling down from heaven on our first attempt at a large family gathering.

1st Thanksgiving at our house was a success.

Lori, Jim, and Granny

Grandpa and Jerry are too busy eating their delicious meal to pause for a picture.

Uncle Jerry and Aunt Francis

The cousins having fun with weaponry on the basement stairwell.

Abbi, Makinna, and Cody.

Look out turkey. Cody has his eye on you. Jim and Ben feeling the pain of a wonderful Thanksgiving meal and relax to a game of football.

Caleb and Abbi battling it out on Lego Batman Wii.

Everyone left before it got dark that evening. Thanksgiving night around 8 or 9 pm Caleb noticed it was snowing outside. Our first snow of the year! Nice size snow flakes fell down, but they didn't amount to much. We still had a little dusting left in the morning. We drove to Henderson to see Mom, Bill, and Kevin Friday morning while all the crazy shoppers were out and about. I usually shop with my brother and we laugh at all the lunatics fighting over gifts and standing in lines for hours. But we usually end up with several bargains ourselves. We weren't really in the mood this year and the ads were not up to par with deals this year.

Cody was excited to see the Pilgrim hat desserts that Shyanne had made for Thanksgiving. Uh, I think you are supposed to eat those, not wear them Cody.

Clint brought Heath and Paige over to play on Saturday.

The cousins had a ball together. What a bunch of rambuntious monkeys!

Look at this precious boy! I could just eat him up, he is so sweet.

Love the holidays with family :)

Turkey in the Straw

2010-11-23T22:08:00.000-06:00

All Hallows' Eve

2010-11-06T14:41:00.007-05:00

The Petitt's pulled off another fantastic Halloween party this year. They dressed in a Scooby Doo theme. Daphne, Fred, Shaggy, and the Phantom greeted us at the door when we arrived.

I went as a witch, Ben was a redneck, Cody a skeleton, and Caleb a werewolf. I think it would be fun if we dressed together as a family theme next year. But that is so hard to do with 2 strong willed little boys, who get their mind set on something and nothing will change it.

Oh no! Cody is stuck in a giant spider web!

Fred and Bubba Joe shooting the bull. They certainly don't look like the types to hang out with each other, but opposites attract.

We had a very busy Halloween weekend. Our church had a trunk-or-treat Saturday afternoon. The kids got to go bobbing for apples. Cody would bob with his feet in the air, teetering on the edge of the bucket trying to sink his teeth into the apple or grab it by the stem.

Victory! He looked like a drowned rat by the time he was done. This little guy is very persistent.

Caleb managed to snag his without getting too wet.

That night we went to a couple of other churches to trunk-or-treat safely with the Petitts. Then Sunday, actual Halloween, we trick or treated on Jefferson Street (downtown Paducah). It was wall to wall kids, teenagers, and parents lined up at every house and down the street. Christy and I were a bit nervous that we would lose track of the boys. We ended up meeting up with Kelly Atnip and her clan, so we had an extra set of adult eyes watching the kiddos. Jefferson St. goes all out for Halloween. Houses are decorated to the tee, the candy distributors are dressed in costume, some houses have games to play, haunted houses to go through, themes like Peter Pan. It was cool to see the Halloween spirit in that neighborhood.

Pumpkin Carving Video

2010-10-31T13:32:00.000-05:00

Corn Maze and Pumpkin Carving

2010-10-31T12:56:00.009-05:00

I am posting a week behind. Last weekend Kevin and Mom came to visit. It was a beautiful weekend, so we decided to do some fall activities. We carved pumpkins and went to the corn maze in Mayfield. Caleb did not like to feel of pumpkin guts on his hands.

Cody loved it. The more slimy the better for Cody.

Pumpkin seeds! Let's put them in the ditch and see if they grow next season. We actually have a rogue pumpkin vine in the shrub line in our backyard. It bloomed late, so it is just now producing pumpkins. We have about 10 little green pumpkins the size of softballs or bigger. Not going to be ready for Halloween, but they are still cool for the fall.

Uncle Kevin lead the pumpkin carving class. We had 2 extra children attend. Our neighbors, Sareena and Peyton had to get in on the action as well.

Kev had to display his artistic ability on our cool white pumpkin. Love the ghost, Kev! It turned out awesome.

Cody painting a dracula with a spider hanging from his head.

The boys showing off their artwork.

Cody always loves getting an art lesson from Uncle Kevin. Here they are drawing haunted houses.

We went to an A-Maizing corn maze in Mayfield. It had 3 different levels of difficulty. We tried the expert and intermediate. It was so hard that it had a map to try to assist you through it. We would have been extremely lost if we hadn't had Navigator KK and CP on our side.

Uncle with his 2 favorite nephews.

Cody loved hiding in the corn. Then popping out to try and scare us.

Mom and I just followed along from the rear. Enjoying watching them figure out which way to go.

"I love this boy!"

"Don't eat corn off the ground"

Fun times at the corn maze!

The Cave

2010-10-25T19:46:00.005-05:00

Weekend before last, we went to Bowling Green to pick up the boys from Memaw and Pepaw. They had a super week with their grandparents during Fall Break. Before we loaded up to go home, the boys decided they wanted to go to Mammoth Cave. Uncle Kevin had told them about Mammoth Cave (his old stomping ground) and they remembered that he said next time you are in BG maybe we will have a chance to go for a tour. Ben and I hadn't been for several years. Caleb went with me when he was a toddler, but of course didn't remember. We had to bring our very own personal Mammoth Cave tour guide, so we loaded up the boys and Uncle KK and away we went up Hwy 65. We decided to go on the "New Entrance" cave tour this time. It has more formations and goes to the Frozen Niagara. We thought the boys would like it. This cave picture looks a bit spooky.

Kevin was quite nostalgic about being back in the cave. He worked there so long as a tour guide and could still tell us lots of cool cave facts.

The boys thought the cave was awesome. Cody wished he were a bat, so he could live in the cave. Caleb enjoyed discovering stalagmites, stalactites, columns, popcorn, soda straws, bacon, drapery, etc. cave formations. Caleb already knew stalagmites (might reach the ceiling) and stalactites (stick tight to the ceiling) from a cave book he had read.

Hopefully we can go back again and try a different tour. Every tour has a different part of the cave and you see totally different formations and cave system.

Before we left town, we went to visit Papaw Burrell. The boys had a good time talking to him about the mischievous things he did as a boy. He told us how all the kids in the neighborhood would meet at his house every morning, then they would all go play up in the mountains (Eastern Kentucky). He said it was surprising that none of them ever saw a bear or wild cat. Before the kids went home in the evening, they would help Burrell with his chores. Which would be to tend the garden and pick from the fruit trees. As thanks, they would send home fruit and vegetables. These kids were very poor, so I am sure that was like a gold mine to come home with fresh healthy food for the family. Papaw has a treasure trove of stories like that and I always love when he is in the mood to tell some.

The boys also got a kick out of Papaw Burrell taking out his dentures to show him what they looked like and what his mouth looked like without teeth. He has always loved children and is so sweet to them.

Soccer Video

2010-10-11T07:49:00.000-05:00

Fall Soccer

2010-10-10T18:45:00.006-05:00

The boys are literally having a ball playing soccer this fall. They are both getting into it and doing well. I am glad to be able to go to all of the games and practices with my new job. It is a blessing to have more time with my family in the evenings and on the weekends. Here is Cody #9 making a goal. He is quite fast.

Cody's favorite past-time while Caleb plays his game. I call him Scooterboy.

Caleb excited about his team making a goal.

The boys Fall Break has started. Memaw and Peepaw met us in Cadiz today to take the boys back with them for the week. They were so excited about staying with them. I hope they have lots of fun.

Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-10T18:35:00.003-05:00

Cody's Kindergarten class went to Wurth Farms pumpkin patch as a field trip this week. I was on Fall Break, so I went along. They went on a hayride out to the pumpkin patch. Then the kids ran around the patch sitting on the pumpkins, rolling them, patting them, and discovering how they grow. Each child got pumpkin seeds and a munchkin pumpkin to bring home with them.

Cody the pumpkin elf.

Always finding treasures everywhere he goes.

Cody's buddy Chase. After we left the pumpkin patch, we went to the park for lunch and playtime on the playground. They were worn out by the time they got back on the bus to head back to school.

BBQ on the River

2010-09-26T18:07:00.003-05:00

We went to BBQ on the River Friday night. Cody wanted to get his face painted, so he got a snake. Caleb doesn't like the paint on his face because it itches, so he got a cool lizard on his arm instead. Ben and I both had BBQ nachos. Yummy! Cody ate a hot dog and Caleb had nachos and they shared fresh squeezed lemonade. Their favorite part is seeing the huge tank of fish from the river and playing on the riverfront.

It turned out to be a beautiful weekend. Fall weather is finally here. The boys went to Hwangs Martial Arts with friends last night for Bring a Friend Night. They ate pizza, played black light dodge ball and many other games from 6p-9p. Ben and I got to have date night while the boys were there :) We went to Tokyo Sushi and had fabulous sushi and chicken teriyaki. Quinn came over to spend the night with Caleb after Hwangs and Cody went to the Atnips to spend the night. Caleb and Quinn stayed up till 4am! They were dragging this morning, but we got them up and filled their tummies with French Toast before church. Caleb fell asleep before lunch and took a nice nap.

Today was beautiful in the 70's. I planted a blue spruce and some bushes in the yard. Ben did some work around the house. I just hope this great weather sticks around and it does not turn freezing cold too soon.

Caleb's Sept 2010 TKD Belt Test

2010-09-19T20:26:00.003-05:00

Here is a video clip of Caleb's belt test. See blog below for details.

Soccer and TKD

2010-09-19T15:47:00.005-05:00

Here is a cool picture that Mom took of us when Kevin came up for Cody's birthday. We went to Grand Rivers and saw replicas of the Nina & Pinta (Columbus' ships). This weekend we were busy with sports with the boys. Both boys are playing soccer again. They are enjoying it so much. Caleb has an awesome young coach who was the captain of Marshall County's soccer team last year. We have learned more from the first couple of practices with him then we have the whole time Caleb has played soccer (since he was 3). Cody has sprouted into quite the assertive little soccer player despite taking a year off. He stays with the ball and scores several goals at every game.

Daddy is assistant coach on Caleb's team and is having a great time.

Saturday Caleb also had a belt test for Tae Kwon Do.

Here is a fun picture of Caleb and Cameron whipping on a black belt. Instructor Jason said, "Remember outside of the Dojang it is not okay to tag team against someone. But let's have some fun and spar as a team against a black belt."

Caleb graduated to green with brown stripe belt. At the next belt test he will graduate to the older kids class where he can progress to black belt. Hwang's Martial Arts

Cody turned 6!

2010-09-06T13:54:00.005-05:00

We have had a busy, but enjoyable Labor Day weekend. Kevin came up to spend the long weekend with us. Cody turned 6 years old on Friday! It is hard to believe that he is already 6. I know, I know, before we know it he will be in highschool. I just want to enjoy the moments we have right now though. They are so precious! Here is a crazy picture of the boys with their weird eyeballs and mustaches that they got at Gattiland Pizza.

Daddy made Cody a special breakfast for his birthday (Buttons and Bowknots-homemade doughnuts). Cody was right there to help, of course. He still loves to help us cook.

On Saturday, we had a birthday party for Cody. We invited the parents for a Labor Day cookout during the party. The kiddos were quite wild. Kevin described it as the opening scene of Home Alone. After they ran in and out of the house for an hour, they all ended up down in the basement. Can I say we LOVE our basement and are so glad it has a door =)

Cody licking the icing off Sponge Bob and Mase patiently waiting for his piece of cake. He devoured his piece faster than any of the other kids.

Here I am practicing making balloon animals. I managed to make a balloon dog. The others ended up popping and scaring Caleb. Cody thought it was great fun though and kept getting the long skinny balloons out all night to blow up and let them fly around the room.

Cody airing up one of the balloons.

I love this picture of Cody and Kiersa having a great time.

Crazy bunch of monkeys.

Cody and our neighbor, Peyton. Cody plays at their house so much that Ray calls him one of the family.

Christy surprised Cody by decorating the window in the door with Window Markers.

Sareena, Cody, Kiersa, and Peyton. These markers are so cool and when they are done, just give them some windex or a water bottle and let them clean the windows.

What an exhausting weekend! The boys both passed out on Uncle Kevin Sunday evening. Caleb fell asleep at 5:30pm and never woke up. He slept until 8am this morning.

Spur of the Moment Nashvegas Trip

2010-08-30T20:48:00.017-05:00

Ben had a conference in Nashville this weekend. The boys and I were going to stay home because his conference very long. Ben called to let us know he arrived safely and was staying in a wonderful hotel downtown with 2 queen beds. I decided to be spontaneous and picked up the boys after school, packed our bags, then headed to Nashvegas for a fun-filled weekend. After a busy week at school, I felt like we needed a relaxing break. The boys were all about hanging at the hotel pool. The highlight of any trip to the boys is swimming in the hotel pool, it is absolutely mandatory. They don't care that we now have a pool of our own. They get to swim in the HOTEL pool!!! We didn't see Daddy much because he was off at the conference all night Friday and all day Saturday. The boys couldn't get over the "fancy" hotel and loved that we were on the 23rd floor with windows overlooking downtown Nashville. It was a beautiful view. Friday night we ate at the hotel, then went swimming. They had a hot tub that I thought was relaxing. The boys thought it was great to get in the hot tub for a couple of minutes, then jump in the pool (because then it felt really chilly). They have great fun challenging each other to different types of jumps and dives. "Watch this..."(belly flop), "Well can you do this?"...(TaeKwonDo kick with huge splash).Saturday I took the boys to the Adventure Science Center. What a neat place for kids. Caleb went last year on a school field trip. It was well worth it, very cool place to explore.

One of Caleb's favorites, the space exhibits.

Cody doing what he does best, monkeying around. Well actually he is lifting a car by hanging on a rope attached to a large pulley. He did it and was so impressed by his strength :)

Cody checking out the Batman building and our hotel with the binoculars from the top of the Science Center.

Look out Caleb, there is a Triceratops right behind you!

Caleb the archeologist.

Dr. Cody R. Peterson

I don't think this person has any brains Mama.

After the Science Center, we walked around downtown Nashville for a couple of hours. Then went back to the hotel for another swim till Daddy was done. We all had dinner at Demos together, yum! That restaurant is a favorite of ours. Saturday night we could see fireworks from our hotel window. What a great weekend with my kiddos. Now it is back to work and school.

School's Back in Session

2010-08-15T21:39:00.006-05:00

Well the boys have started back to school. Caleb began third grade last Thursday and was very excited to see all his friends. Cody began Kindergarten the day after Caleb. He is in the same school as Caleb now. He had a bit of hesitancy the night before Kindergarten started. While tucking him into bed, he began to cry and say he didn't want to go to Kindergarten. He asked if he would ever get to go back to Daycare and see his friends there. I think he was just getting nervous about not knowing what to expect. He has been at Daycare since he was 3 months old. His Preschool was at the same Daycare and he has grown up with the same friends and teachers. He has been looking forward to starting Kindergarten for a long time, so I was surprised at his meltdown. We had a long talk about all of the cool things in Kindergarten...special art classes, P.E., the new playground equipment. We named off the friends he already knew at the school. Caleb told him all of the cool stuff about his school and Cody got excited again.

He woke up ready to go and was so excited to put on his new backpack.

I walked him and Caleb into the gym, where all the kids wait until the bell rings and their teachers come greet them. I couldn't go back to his class with him because they thought it might be too difficult for some children to let their parents leave. Cody did fine, I found a little boy that we had met at Back to School Night. He sat at the same table as Cody. They both looked a little nervous and overwhelmed, so I introduced them and pointed out that they were in the same class and sat beside each other. They sat down next to each other and Cody gave me a hug. I can't believe my baby is now in Kindergarten!! Time sure flies.

My big school boys:)

Game Night with the Fam

2010-07-19T16:53:00.014-05:00

We had game night every night that the Howard family was here. We played cards, Apples to Apples, Cranium, and of course one of our favorites...

...Mexican dominos.

Lori and Kevin mixing it up.
Cody is sporting the winner's hat.

What's the matter Troy?

Papaw even won a round.

We had some awesome Band Hero concerts with band members of "Grumpy Zombie".
Caleb is the lead of the band. Below Dad is on electric guitar, Troy on drums, and Kevin singing.

Caleb is learning to play pool. He is catching on quite well.
Cody is doing what he does best.

We also had some air hockey matches.

Check out this video clip of the action in the basement.

Annual Howard Family Visit

2010-07-19T16:13:00.018-05:00

We spent time swimming in our pool over the weekend. Troy became master pool flipper for the boys. They had great fun being tossed into the air as they tried to dive or somersault.It was nice in the evenings to take a dip after the hot afternoons we have been having.

Kevin and Dad had fun with our water sprayers that squirt all the way across the pool at unsuspecting swimmers.

Jasmine found some new laps to love. She spent Troy-time whenever he was on the laptop and sat in my Dad's lap as he watched movies.Cody's new favorite pasttime is drawing and coloring. He packs his coloring books, paper, and colored pencils around everywhere we go. He sits in front of the television every morning coloring and drawing. Uncle Kevin and Troy colored with Cody many times while they were here. He loves getting helpful hints from his artistic uncles.

We went to Metropolis, Illinois on Saturday. Cody hoping Superman will take him "UP, UP, AND AWAY". We then went to Fort Massac State Park. We brought a picnic to eat at the park. We wanted to hike around, but it was too dog-gone hot.
Crazy Kev is peeping out for invaders.

Dad and Lori enjoyed the riverfront.

Handsome boys and men :)

4th of July Festivities

2010-07-08T14:05:00.020-05:00

Paul and Christy invited us over for their annual 4th of July party. They invited several friends and we had many children running around their yard. The adults sat back and chilled out for awhile.

Chef Ben was the smoker of the chicken, burgers, and dogs. Yum good!

The kids took turns riding on the go-cart, playing ball, and climbing on the playset.

Cheeseballs and beer are great on 4th of July ; )

Christy, Carol, and Ed

Me trying to stay cool in the heat.
Sparklers, snap-pops, and smoke bombs were the favorite of the kids.

Ben and Paul having fun lighting the fireworks for the kids.

After the kid fireworks, the men went and got the big show ready. When it got dark they set off a fabulous display of fountains and beautiful fireworks in the dark starry sky. The kids stayed in the fort of the playset with a play by play of "Oohs", "ahhs" and "awesomes" coming from their seating area. This was the first year that Cody stayed outside watching the fireworks the whole time. He usually runs for the house as soon as the big boomers start. He was proud of himself and was glad that he got to see the great show.It was a wonderful night of fun and festivities with our friends. We were all worn out when we got home. !

Boy time

2010-06-29T22:34:00.001-05:00

Caleb went to church camp this past weekend with his Daddy. Camp Kum-Ba-Ya is a beautiful camp on the lake. It was a hot weekend, but they kept cool swimming in the lake. They also went canoeing and Caleb caught 2 fish. Painted rocks, played silly games, and had a shaving cream fight. They had a good time together.

Cody and I had "Mama/son time". We stayed up late watching movies, picked up Kiersa for a playdate, went to a toy store, went to DQ, and saw the movie "Marmaduke" at the theater. It was great having one-on-one time with him. I love my little buddy!

Little Brother Graduates!

2010-06-19T21:33:00.013-05:00

Well, my little brother finally graduated from highschool! Ben, myself, Kevin, and the boys all made the long haul to Florida to celebrate with him.

Lori had a wonderful graduation party for family and friends the afternoon before graduation. Here are Dad and Uncle Freddie chatting it up.

Kevin and Aunt Pam stuffed to the gills on all the wonderful food.

Then we all headed out to the where the graduation was held. It was a hot, humid night (no air-conditioning in the open air arena). But we cheered our loudest for our favorite graduate.

Cody really bonded with Uncle Freddie and his antics during the ceremony.

Here comes our Troy-boy!

In the center with glasses.

Headed up the stairwell to receive his diploma. Congratulations Troy! We wish you the best in your new endeavors :)

**For my blog readers, I just posted 3 blog posts on our Florida vacation so don't miss out on the other 2 previous posts ;)

Lion Country Safari and NASA

2010-06-19T20:54:00.017-05:00

While in Florida we went to Lion Country Safari. It is a really cool drive-thru safari with an amusement park to walk through as well. We drove through the park, then got out to see the other animals. Here is the first critter we came across...

The boys were so excited to get to ride on the camel.

We got to see the zookeeper feed the giraffe. We were up close enough to touch her. She kept twirling her tree branch around with her long purple tongue, until she got to the tender leaves.

The boys got to feed lorys nectar. They thought the lorys little feet tickled on their arms.

We got to ride one of my favorite rides- the merry-go-round. They also had a splash park, so we brought swim suits for the boys and hit the water when it got hot.

The next day we went to Kennedy Space Center.

The boys were so excited to see the other NASA (remember we went to Johnson Space Center in April).

Here is Caleb, Kevin, and Cody in front of the huge Saturn rocket.

The rockets in the rocket garden reached up to the heavens.

I decided to take a ride on the moon with the boys.

The most memorable part of our NASA experience was Caleb traumatic flip-flop saga. When we were on our bus tour of NASA, we visited a building where scientists were working on the Space Lab. The incident occurred walking across a catwalk between two buildings in a restricted area. Caleb hung his arm between the bars of the catwalk, flip-flop in his outstretched arm and playfully exclaimed, "Bye, bye, flip-flop!" Now this is Caleb, mind you, not the mischievious one. He was just trying to make a joke, but the joke was on him when he brought his arm back through the rail and knocked the flip-flop out of his hand. Poor lonely flip-flop tumbled down into the restricted area at NASA. Caleb was mortified and began bawling. He then had to walk back to the bus stop barefoot with the other lone flip-flop in his hand, until we made him part with it in the nearest trash bin. Many tourists looked at the Kentuckians walking around NASA with the barefooted boy, until we found the nearest gift shop. Caleb then happily wore women's size 6 flip-flops that really flopped on his too small feet. He still to this day will not let me have those oversized NASA flip-flops and I won't let him live down "Bye, bye, flip-flop!" So on the last space shuttle mission, if you see a lone flip-flop floating by in space just like the famous astronaut's glove, you will know it is "Bye, bye".

Finally posting on Florida vacation

2010-06-19T20:25:00.012-05:00

We went to Port St. Lucie, Florida last week for Troy's graduation and our summer vacation. We had to hit the beach as soon as we arrived, so the boys could play in the waves for awhile and search for seashells. We went to Fort Pierce beach the first day. The waves were very calm, but it was super HOT so we didn't stay long.

The next beach day, we went to Bathtub Reef. This was a cool beach that dad used to take Kevin and I to when we were younger. It was demolished in the hurricanes in 2004. They just re-opened it a couple of weeks ago. There was supposed to be super snorkeling there at the coral reef. The water was very shallow for a long way out and the corals were close. But the water was kind of cloudy and full of seaweed that kept tangling around our ankles and legs.

Cody was excited to snorkel for the first time. Here is Caleb snorkeling.

The boys had a blast building sandcastles and playing in the waves.

It was a fun relaxing day. So nice to sit back and watch the waves roll in.

Summer is Here!

2010-05-31T20:12:00.009-05:00

Caleb had an Awards Ceremony on the last day of school. He received an award for Accelerated Math. He was told that he received more Accelerated Math objective points than any 2nd grader has ever achieved at his school. He is also now reading at Accelerated Reader level 6.6 (6th grader, in the 6th month).

We are so proud of him :)

Grandmom came to visit this weekend. We went to Olive Garden for lunch and then came home to relax in our swimming pool. It was a hot weekend. Grandmom and Cody helped me wash our new windows.

The boys love our pool. Caleb swims like a little fish.

It is over Cody's head, so he wears his lifejacket. But he still swims and jumps in with no fear. They know the rules though, no one allowed in the pool or on the pool deck unless an adult is watching.

Mom also helped me plant some more flowers and a deck planter to attract hummingbirds to our feeders. They look beautiful and really dress up the deck. Thanks Mom!

End of school=swimming pools, summer camps, flowers blooming, playing outside, lightening bugs, going to the lake, vacation, and shirtless tan little boys. It has already begun. The boys will be starting a Summer Camp this week instead of being at daycare all summer. They will have activities, swimming, and field trips with this program all summer long. They also have a part-time option, since I will only be working 3 days a week this summer. Then on my days off, we can be home to swim in our pool or hang out with friends. Looking forward to good times!

Cody's Preschool Graduation

2010-05-21T21:47:00.007-05:00

Cody graduated from Preschool last night. He is so excited about starting Kindergarten at Caleb's school in the fall. Here he is with Miss Lauren. His favorite teacher that he adores. She spoils him rotten and loves on him constantly. Miss Lauren first had Cody as a toddler, then she moved to the 4 year old class when Cody started that class. She has had him till now in daycare and preschool. She understands his energetic, spirited nature and his need for lots of attention. We will truely miss her next year : (

Cody sees Daddy walking into his graduation.

My precious boy!

Caleb and his buddy, Mase (Quinn's little brother).

Miss Michelle receiving a gift from Cody. Miss Michelle is an excellent preschool teacher who we have had the honor of having for 5 years. She had Caleb for 2 years and Cody for 3 years. She really has a gift with the kids. Miss Michelle and Mrs. Allyson have planned activities, field trips, learning lessons, memorization, games, and both LOVE books. They prep the kids very well for Kindergarten. Making sure they know their letters, numbers, colors, shapes, how to write their name, know their phone number and address, begin to read, add, and count coins.

We will miss preschool, but are so ready for Kindergarten. Especially looking forward to both boys being at the same school.

Rachel and Matt's Wedding

2010-05-02T21:46:00.023-05:00

My Texas cousin, Rachel, got married in a beautiful outdoor wedding last weekend. She was absolutely gorgeous and the wedding was amazing. The weather was perfect and the wedding was held at a wonderous place decorated with pottery, fountains, flowers, and gardens everywhere.Wow! Look at this great looking family.

My boys were so handsome and behaved so well the whole trip.

Rachel and Matt saying their vows.

Mr. and Mrs. Zamzow

Girl cousins: Kimber, Amber, and myself (aren't we stunning!)

Aunt Kathy, Kimber, Mom, Aunt Debbie, and Bill all in deep discussion.

Uncle Rich and his newly married daughter. Jason in the background.

Aunt Marie, mother of the bride, looked great.

Cousin Lauren, bridesmaid, looked like she stepped out of a 1920's movie. Loved the hair, so sheek. Uncle Pepper is beside her.

Debbie, Sandy, Amber, Kimber, Pepper, and Kathy: The Chatelain's have arrived-time to party!Kimber, Uncle Pepper, and Aunt Kathy: What a good-looking family =)

Amber and Aunt Sandy looking very elegant in coordinating colors.

Uncle Darrell and Aunt Debbie-didn't know those Arkansas folk could clean up so well!

The Eddins/Zamzow family: Byron, Rich, Matt, Rachel, Marie, Lauren, and Jason

We had a great time in Texas visiting all of our family! The boys enjoyed meeting cousins, aunts, and uncles. They are still talking about Jason and Byron-you guys made big impressions on them. The wedding was fabulous! Reception was a blast. Good to see that the Chatelain family still knows how to have a good time and aren't afraid to get out there and show it. Love you all!!!

Spring flowers and Muddy boys

2010-04-21T21:55:00.008-05:00

Ahhhhh! Springtime is in the air. My favorite time of year. I love the flowers blooming and trees budding. Everything is bursting in color and life. I have been so excited to see what will bloom at our new house. We moved here in the fall, so although some things were still blooming, most were past their peak or were dead.

Here are two types of iris that just bloomed this week. The blood red one is amazing. These are along the side of the garage. The lavender ones are in the garden beside the pool. I also had lots of daffodils all over the yard in March. The previous owner must have loved flowers because she has little gardens and bunches of flowers all over the place. I see green foliage everywhere and cannot wait to see what will unfold. It is like Christmas!

We went to the Petitt's recently. Ben and Paul went fishing because it was gorgeous weather. I went over to the Petitt's with the boys. They played inside for awhile, then Adam and Cody went outside to play. Where the above-ground pool had been last summer, there is a bare spot that is bare dirt. Adam and Cody began digging around in it. Probably pretending they were digging for gold or discovering dinosaur bones.

The next thing we see, Adam is heaving a large bucket of water across the yard to the dirt patch. They start pouring it in the hole, kind of like you do at the beach. They are having a blast digging in the mud and adding more water to make mudpies. Meanwhile, Caleb and Andrew show up outside too. Hey-this looks like fun! Can we dig in the mud too?

Christy and I go inside for a snack and to cool off. (This was the weekend that it was in the upper 80's). Christy looks out the window and starts dying laughing.

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This is what we see.....

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:):):):):):):)

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:-):-):-):-)

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(+;(-;(=;(~;

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OK, I'll show you now.

Four little mud dogs having the time of their life. Slipping, sliding, rolling in the gooey muddy mess. To identify in the picture: Caleb, Andrew, Adam, and Cody. Once it was done, it was done. Why rain on their parade and yell at them. Look at the joy on Andrew's face. They were being boys. They finally clumped across the yard and said they were ready to get cleaned up. I hosed off the majority of the slop with a cold hose. While Christy got buckets of hot water from the house to pour over their heads and scrub them down before they came inside. They took turns getting steamy hot showers and all had to suds up several times to get clean. We had to use Q-tips to get the mud out of their ears!

I just want to leave a little message for my friend Amy, who just had a sweet little baby boy. I am so glad that you had a BOY this time. Look what you have to look forward to :)

Family time

2010-04-21T20:57:00.011-05:00

Weekend before last, Ben's parents and grandparents came for a visit. It was wonderful to have Donna, Dave, Granny, and Grandpa here for the whole weekend! The men went to check out the flea market and drive around doing manly stuff, while the women went to Hancock Fabrics and shopping for fabric.I don't remember what got Cody in a mood before this picture, but we couldn't get the grouchies away even for a Miller generational picture.

Donna takes after her talented mother and is becoming quite a seamstress. She arrived at our house with some of her crocheting and knitting handiwork- a hat and scarf for Cody. He had asked for a scarf this winter after she made me a beautiful one to match my coat. She had also made pillowcases for each boy to match their room. Jungle animals for Cody and Planets for Caleb. After hunting around the fabric stores in Paducah, Donna found the same planet fabric to make Caleb two sets of valances for his windows. Then she made Cody a valance and another pillowcase. Have I mentioned that she is the greatest Mother-in-law ever? They look absolutely perfect in their rooms! Here is Caleb's space room, complete with planets hanging from the ceiling and space wallies on the wall. He picked the colors out and I have been slowly getting it painted. I have one more wall to complete. Don't the valances look great! Ca;eb wanted 2 walls in the dark Mystic Blue and the 2 opposite walls remained white, but adding green stripes (like a space ship or ufo). The border around the top where the wallpaper border was peeled off is red. I was hesitant, but it looks great with the space wallie stickers to make it complete. Here is Cody's valance in his jungle room. And one of his pillowcases. Peepaw and Caleb had a great time playing Boxing on the Wii.I don't know who enjoyed playing the Wii more ;)

Jasmine spent a lot of time cuddling with Grandpa. I think in cat years, they are the same age and both enjoy the same hobby--sleeping :)

It was a great weekend and we can't wait for you all to come back soon!

Rosey's Haircut

2010-04-07T19:53:00.006-05:00

We have been holding out on getting Rosey a haircut until it warmed up. She was beginning to get very matted from not having a haircut since last fall.

BEFORE
AFTER

Stop laughing at my Schnoodle! Yes, it is the same dog. When the groomer walked up to me with a leash and a naked skinny black dog attached, I looked around the store for my furry mop. Then I realized this was Rosey shaven to nakedness. She loves it though and has been prancing around feeling very cool and light. The only hair left is her fluffy, feathery tail that she holds up high like a pony prancing around the yard. She is hilarious looking.

Easter

2010-04-07T19:03:00.011-05:00

The boys love the Easter tradition of decorating Easter eggs. They enjoy it more than Easter Egg hunts and probably even more than the long-eared fella. It was always a favorite tradition of me and Kevin as well. I have fond memories of dyeing eggs with Mom in the kitchen and decorating them with flowers, birds, hearts, and curly cues. While Kevin always had the artistic faces, egg people, and animals. Here is a great picture of the crazy boys decorating their eggs with markers and stickers. Check out the cute videos below of the Eggcellent Decorating Fest.
Festive Easter Eggs! Can you tell which ones Uncle Kevin decorated?

Daffodils the boys and Kevin picked for me from my yard :)

Easter morning

Family picture before church.

Easter morning with Uncle Kevin.

My awesome Strawberry Peep Cake for Easter dinner at the Gottmans.

Dye those eggs

Eggcellent Easter Egg Decorating Fest

Caleb's TKD Exhibition

2010-03-31T10:41:00.013-05:00

Caleb had a TKD Exhibition in Louisville this past weekend. It wasn't a competition, just a show. The 4 different Hwang's TKD dojangs in Louisville performed, as well as Caleb's dojang in Paducah.

Cool Chinese dragons

Grandmaster Jung Oh Hwang won a silver medal in Judo in the 1984 Olympics. He holds a 6th degree black belt in TKD and Judo, as well as a 7th degree black belt in Hapkido.

Caleb's Exhibition

Grandmaster Jung Oh Hwang

March TKD Belt Test

2010-03-22T19:52:00.004-05:00

Caleb had another belt test this past weekend in Tae Kwon Do. I had to work again, of course. He did a great job and is now an orange belt with red stripe. Ben videoed while fighting off Cody's antics the whole time. Enjoy the clips.

Caleb's form-Tae Geuk Il Jang.
Caleb had fun sparring with black belt-Justin. He even got in a kick to the chin.

Fun in Henderson

2010-03-18T13:35:00.010-05:00

We went to Henderson this weekend to visit Grandmom and Papaw. Unfortunately it was a cold weekend, so we didn't get out much. We had a great visit though. It is always wonderful to catch up on life in person. Ben and Bill had fun at the shooting range practicing for their Texas hog hunt coming up in April. They also made their mandatory trip to Rural King (the 'Target' for country boys).
Paige came over to play with her cousins and got to spend the night too. They played legos, colored pictures, pretended they were Ben 10 characters, and played board games. Lots of squealing, giggling, and running all over the house. Mom said she wished she had a basement like we do. It would probably make it easier on the Grands who aren't used to noisy, rowdy children. But overall they were very well-behaved.

Paige read the boys their bedtime stories. They must have all been tired because they all fell asleep pretty quickly.

Isn't she a cutie! Don't let the pink girly look fool you- she can wrestle and rough house just as well as the boys.

Chillin with the Nintendos.

They were snuggling with Grandmom after playing outside for over an hour. They didn't mind the cold and we thought the fresh air was good for them after being cooped up all weekend. Mom and I kept checking on them and saw they were exploring the yard. Poking around the flower beds, discovering things in the grass, chasing each other, playing hide and seek. Right after this photo, we discovered that the kids had thrown driveway gravel all over the backyard (not good for lawnmowers), while innocently playing outside. Must have had a hayday at it because it took them about 30 minutes to pick it all up. Never a dull moment!

Caleb's Birthday Sleepover

2010-02-28T13:50:00.002-06:00

Caleb decided to have a sleepover for his birthday this year. We had 4 boys spend the night. Uncle Kevin also came for the weekend. I warned him that there would be 6 boys at the house, but he was a brave soul and decided to come anyway.I made Cody, Caleb, Joseph, and Quinn go outside and play for awhile when they first arrived. It was cold, so that didn't last long. I ordered pizza for the crazy bunch and found them downstairs in the dojang with their shirts off practicing Tae Kwon Do and Jiu Jitsu.

Flexing muscles. This is the unfinished side of our basement (the dojang) where Caleb's TKD gear is kept and our workout equipment.

Time to open presents and eat cupcakes.

Adam, Caleb, and Joseph playing Wii in the basement. The boys played in the basement most of the night, which was great for the noise-level for us old fogeys.

All of the boys played together really well. No fighting or feelings hurt. Cody got upset once because he wanted to watch a movie downstairs and the others wanted to play a game. I brought some of Caleb's new birthday toys down in the basement and that distracted them.

Quinn and Cody playing Bakugan.

Silly time!

Who will be air hockey champion?

The boys had a great time. I put a movie in around 10pm to get them settled down. They wanted to all sleep together in the basement on sleeping bags. I fixed popcorn and they munched till crashing around midnight. Then they were up again at 6:30am. Ben made chocolate chip pancakes for the hungry bunch. I think they all ended up taking naps later that afternoon and we went to bed early Saturday night.

Sunday we decided to start a bonfire and burn some of the branches and tree limbs from our yard. We have been piling them at the bottom of our hill, as the wind knocks down snags and hanging limbs left over from last year's ice storm.

Campfire hotdogs are the best!

Sweetheart Dance

2010-02-22T21:28:00.013-06:00

Cody had a Sweetheart Dance at Preschool last week. They have been practicing dancing with partners for a couple of weeks. Cody's partner changed several times. He began with Kiersa, then moved onto another partner. Then he was back dancing with Kiersa, then he ended up with Abby. It seems that many of the girls wanted to dance with him. He is a flirt and quite the little ladies man. The preschool teacher finally ended the trading of partners and tearful breakdowns. She decided bribery was in order. She placed them with their final partners and told them if they danced with that partner, they would get a present at the end of the dance. It worked like a charm, except for a couple of shy ones who froze and ran to their mommies when going out on the floor.
My camera ran out of batteries just as the dancing began! Just my luck!!!

Mother/Son Dance

Caleb sweetly danced with Kiersa when her partner left in puddle of tears and fear of public demonstration. I was proud of him for stepping up to help his friend out.

Always the clown!

Kiersa looking adoringly at Cody.

Mr. Cool, letting it all hang out.

Mama is still my best girl!

Cody said this was the best party ever. He had so much fun!

My Birthday

2010-02-10T13:29:00.006-06:00

My birthday was this past Saturday. Ben's parents came up to visit. They brought Ben's grandparents butcherboard kitchen piece. Cody helped Peepaw put it back together.

Ben got me a new Sanyo Dual Camera for my birthday. It is a small camcorder that also takes pictures. He knew I would love it for my blogs :)

Here is Cody's first turn at cinematography.

Cody helped Memaw make Mama's cake. He loves to help cook.

Cody has the video camera for the candle blowing. Notice he is focused on the cake, not me.

That evening Ben's parents watched the boys, while we went to dinner and a show. We ate at Jasmine's Thai Restaurant which was fabulous. Then went to a Broadway show at Four Rivers, "Camelot". I love that romantic era with knights and princesses. It was the time told story of King Arthur, Queen Gweneviere, Lancelot, and the Knights of the Round Table. It was a good show. Great costumes and the actors did a suburb job portraying the tale.

Wash Your Mouth out with Soap

2010-01-16T18:44:00.003-06:00

I will begin this blog with a plea that no one will think that I am an evil mother for what I am about to tell you. I have upon occasion used the punishment of washing my youngest child's mouth out with soap when (1) he has a naughty mouth (2) he is back-talking or sassing me (3) he sticks his tongue out. Hey if the mom from "The Christmas Story" can do it, then I can too. I can tell you, it works. I haven't had to do it often, but when he is extremely naughty and other punishments are laughable to him. Then he gets the soap treatment. Now sometimes just the threat of soap makes him turn into an angel apologizing profusely. Now some of you are now picturing my youngest little angel with a bar of soap in his mouth for 5 minutes like poor Ralphie. Before you start thinking I am cruel or insane, let me tell you what I do. Naughty One goes to the bathroom for his punishment. I either use a bar of mild soap and swipe it across the inside of his mouth or mild liquid detergent is used and I squirt a drop on my finger and put it along his gums. He may then immediately go to the sink to spit and wash his mouth out with water. An unpleasant taste isn't enough to hurt him, but it sure curbs the bad talk or back-talking for a long time.

Here is where the story begins...this past week the boys and I were sitting in the living room. Naughty One got mad at something and started throwing a fit. Screaming, yelling, tossing himself upon the couch, then he started back-talking and yelling at Mama. All I said was, "It looks like I'm going to have to go get some soap." Naughty One jumped up and ran out of the room. I started talking to Caleb and forgot the episode. Caleb and I then heard from the bathroom spitting, gagging, and water running. I looked at Caleb and said, "Is your brother washing his own mouth out with soap?" Caleb was dying with laughter and said, "Yeah, I think he is!" I said, "He aint' right." In walks Naughty One with tears in his eyes,

"I just washed my mouth out with soap. I'm sorry."

Fun in the Snow

2010-01-09T15:42:00.012-06:00

Adam and Andrew came to play on Friday. The boys took turns sledding down the hill.

Best buddies!

Caleb and Adam tried their best to sled all the way into the frozen creek.

Andrew and Cody took the least likely to crash into a tree or drop off into the creek route.

Andrew and Caleb ended up going back inside after about 45 minutes in the snow. They wanted to play the Wii. Adam and Cody played outside for another 30 minutes, then came in to watch movies and warm up with hot chocolate.
Christy and I always laugh at how the 4 of them pair off like that oldest with youngest (their personalities match best that way).

Now for some indoor activities to warm up. Cody playing with his pal, Rosey.

Then art time...perhaps the nephews will take after you, Uncle Kevin. Here they are drawing animals from their new Ed Emberley's Drawing Book of Animals. They thought it was so cool that they could follow the directions of drawing simple shapes and turn them into animals. They turned out really cute.

Here are Caleb's drawings of a fire breathing dragon, hedgehog, turtle, some dogs, a raccoon with a baby chick on it's tail, and a fuzzy caterpillar.

Cody drew a scary looking gorilla and some tadpoles.

We ordered another Ed Emberley book from Amazon.com. It is "Drawing Book of Weirdos"-with dracula, frankenstein, King Kong, witches, werewolves, etc. Caleb picked that one out :)

First Snow Day of 2010

2010-01-07T14:41:00.018-06:00

Today we woke up to about an inch of snow. Everyone in Western Kentucky has been freaking out about the snow coming. "We don't want to end up in the same predicament as we did last year during the ice storm". I went to the grocery on Tuesday on my way home from work, not because we were getting snow, but because we were out of a couple of things, namely potatoes. Cody has been begging me to fix mashed potatoes for several days and I have been out, since I used them all in the potato casserole on New Years Eve. Anyway I went to the produce department and walked straight over to where the potatoes are displayed. I couldn't find any potatoes except red potatoes. I retraced my steps to the front of the produce and around each produce bin thinking, "well maybe they are next to the apples, or the oranges, or bananas, okay maybe they don't have any potatoes...now that is really strange". I still wasn't thinking about snow and all of Paducah buying potatoes because of the snow. I was disappointed that I couldn't find any potatoes for Cody, so I went down another aisle to find a couple of other things on my list. The shelves were ransacked, especially of non-perishable food items. What is going on? This store always has a good selection. Then I came to the front of the aisles where I could see the cash registers, by now I had about 10 items in my cart (that always seems to happen when just stopping in for one thing). Each register was open and there were several people in each line with their carts overflowing. Then it hit me...SNOW! You have got to be kidding!

That leads us to today, the first Snow Day of 2010. Yes, Snow Day, as in the kids are out of school because of an inch of snow. At this very moment I hear my aunt and uncle in North Carolina laughing hysterically. Thank goodness she is from Kentucky and knows how Kentucky comes to a standstill because of a snowflake or the forecast of a possible snowflake.

I had to work this morning, so the boys had to go to daycare. Cody begged for me to pick them up early so they could play in the snow before it melted and before it got too dark. I promised them I'd pick them up after lunch and I did. When we got home two little boys were stuffed into snowsuits, snowboots, coats, gloves, hats and all the cold weather paraphenalia. Then out they went excited about sledding down the hillside at our new house and playing in the snow.

Check out this video of Mr. Perfection finding the best spot to start the sled. You can't just jump in and let it ride, it takes some planning.

Even Rosie got in on the snow action. Looks like she is grinning with excitement in this picture. Check out the ice balls in her beard.

After an hour of play, the boys came in for a quick mug of hot cocoa and marshmallows before headed back outside.

Yes, Caleb has hot cocoa on his face. He got to giggling while he was drinking and it splattered everywhere.

The neighbor girls Peyton and Serena came over to try out the hillside. Then the Petitt boys stopped by briefly to see what fun was being had at the Peterson household. They couldn't stay long because they didn't have enough warm gear on, but they did get a few sled rides in before headed back home for fun of their own.

Caleb played outside for 2 1/2 hours! Cody came in after about 2 hours crying because his feet were cold. I bundled him up with warm socks, slippers, and a blanket and put him by the fire until he thawed out.

They have played so hard that now they have the munchies. Hopefully they will go to bed early tonight :) I imagine it will be back to school tomorrow. Watching them play in the snow today brought back many fond memories of playing in the snow with my brother, Kevin. Our neighbor Amanda had a great hill for sledding and we would have great fun playing in the ice on our creek, making pretend animal tracks up the hillside, and rolling giant snow balls around the yard. It is fun to watch my boys making memories of their own and enjoying the best of childhood. Now I better go make some mashed potatoes for a tired little boy, hopefully he won't notice that they are red potatoes.