Everyday with the Evelsizers

Brothers and Big, Red Firetrucks

2012-02-02T20:04:00.000-06:00

Today Dane and Reese were dressed in their Big Brother, Little Brother shirts. I first tried to get a picture as they sat on the floor together watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse this morning. They were singing a song at the time so neither of them would even glance at me.

I moved them to the couch and it wasn't much better. Dane said, "Cheese", but he wouldn't look at me. When I finally gave up and got ready to put Reese in the carseat so we could head out to school Dane decided he wanted to hold Reese. I promised him he could as soon as we got home this afternoon.

Tuesday Dane stayed home with Dave for a little "Daddy and Dane" day. They first went to Target and Sams for me. :) When they got back home they went up to the Lake Forest Firehouse so Dave could practice some skills. Dane, of course, had a blast. He told me all about the firetrucks and how they were big and red. He said Daddy drove the truck and it sprayed water.

Looks like he is having a pretty good time.

He even wore his little fireman raincoat.

He totally enjoyed his day with Daddy.

Bits and Pieces....

2012-02-01T21:42:00.001-06:00

Some bits and pieces of what is going on these days......

A friend gave us a Bumbo seat for Reese to sit in. He hangs out in it while we eat dinner. He seems to love it!

***Last weekend when we were in Kirkwood we stopped at the new Jilly's Cupcake Bar. I grabbed a Turtle Cheesecake Cupcake for the weekend. It was delicious and a great little treat for me!

***Even though I had a Jilly's Cupcake last weekend I am still working hard on eating healthy and walking. I have the perfect new walking partner in my neighborhood. I still want a treadmill though.

Reese's Gentle Giraffe hangs out on his little chair. He also has a Sleepy Sheep that hangs out on his carseat. He loves to listen to the music.

Sleepy little boy. This little man is a good little sleeper. He goes to sleep by 7:30 p.m. and I usually have to wake him up at 6:00 a.m.

Tracey has a letter, number, shape, and color of the week that the kids learn about at daycare. She also sends home little activities for us to do at home. Dane loves it and says, "I need to do my school work mommy." Tonight we colored the letter "C".

Dave ran to the mini mart a few minutes away to grab some milk to hold us over until our grocery shopping trip the next day. He came home with this.......milk in a glass bottle. Dane was so confused. He kept saying, "What's that mommy?" We can return it to get the $1 deposit back. Right now it sits on our counter....kind of driving me crazy.

Dane often yells at Max when he is barking. "Don't bark Max. You're going to wake my brother up."
I think Dave and I need an anniversary get away! Might need to start lining up some babysitters!
Tomorrow is Thursday already! I have to admit, I love Tuesdays and Wednesdays when I get to sleep until 5:30 a.m. instead of 5:00 a.m.

Birthday Celebrations!

2012-01-29T21:13:00.001-06:00

Friday night we gathered at my parent's house to celebrate several birthdays. We were celebrating Darnel's birthday a little late, Claire's birthday a little early, and my birthday a little early.

Dane was so excited that all of his cousins were going to be there. I don't think Claire and Dane stopped moving for one second all night. They cooked and played trains.

Sweet little Reese hung out with Tom.

The kids eating dinner.

Joe was really enjoying his food!

While we ate Reese took his evening nap.

Then it was time for cake.

Darnel had a cookie cake.

Claire had cupcakes.

I had Turtle Ice Cream Cake.

Dane absolutely LOVED the cupcakes!

He was so happy when Mama gave him one to bring home.

When he got up the next morning it was the first thing he said to me..."Where's my cupcake mommy?"

We opened gifts and hung out a bit more. It was a fun and relaxing night. The kids just had an absolute ball running around. Both the boys slept great after the party!

Tuesday

2012-01-24T22:12:00.000-06:00

Sweet little brothers watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse together while I make my lunch and we get ready to head out the door in the morning.

They both want to hang out on Daddy's lap while I cook dinner.

Making Playdoh Pizzas with Daddy

So proud of his pizza!

Dane wanted to show Reese his pizza and he kept saying, "Smell it Reese, smell it."

My two little buddies!

Our Weekend

2012-01-22T20:15:00.000-06:00

We had a great weekend! Yesterday Dane, Reese, and I left early for Kirkwood. I had a TON of errands to do. I planned to get to Kirkwood, see my parents, feed Reese, and then start my errands. I was a little concerned about taking both boys shopping with me. It usually doesn't bother me, but it was cold out, I had several stops to make, and one of the stops was the mall. Right before going to bed on Friday night I got a text from my sister, Kara, and she invited Dane over for a playdate. Dane and I were both excited! He couldn't wait to play with Claire and it made my shopping so much easier!

We went to my mom and dad's house first. Dane played and Reese smiled ALOT! Aunt Katie came over to see the boys, then Aunt Kara and Claire came over, and then Uncle T.J. arrived. Papa made breakfast for all of us and we hung out. My mom had somewhere to be in the afternoon, so when she headed out we all got ready to go. My sister, Katie, went with me and I got ALL of my errands done. Dane played at Aunt Kara's house with Claire and had a blast....he had so much fun that when I went to get him he was sound asleep on the couch...worn out!

This morning Reese woke up first and I fed him while we waited for Dane to wake up. When Dane woke up we were hanging out in the living room when Dane said, "Daddy's home." I thought he heard the washer running and thought it was the garage door, so I said, "No, Daddy's at work." Then he said, "No, mommy, he's right there." I looked out the window and sure enough Dave was pulling in the garage. They had extra leuitenants so he got to come home. We were soooo excited!

We had such a great day at home together. We hung out in the basement and Dane played while Dave and I watched the movie, "I Don't Know How She Does It." We had soup in the crockpot for dinner and we stayed in our pjs all day! It was the perfect Sunday at home!

Dane slept.

Dave and Reese slept.

I ironed 15 outfits, 5 for each of the boys and 5 for me, for the week. I graded and recorded papers.

We are now showered, in our pjs, the boys are in bed, and we are ready for the week!

Feeling so relaxed!

2012-01-20T20:19:00.002-06:00

I have felt so relaxed this week.

It's funny though:

-I got up by 5:00 every morning, usually after staying up a little too late.

-I was out of the house by 6:45 every morning with two sweet boys

-I made three trips down the stairs to the car every morning (one with Dane, one with Reese, one with my school stuff)

-I had a 7:15 a.m. meeting one morning

-I had an after school meeting that I forgot about until it was announced as a reminder during morning announcements.

-I had a parent meeting

-I had to write up a disruptive student and then witness as the principal paddled him

-Dave worked 3 hours late one day

-Dave had a Fire Department Meeting one evening

BUT......my husband is on day shift and it seems to make a world of difference.

I TOTALLY enjoyed some little things in life like.......

-being able to leave school without having to think, "Do I need to use the restroom, because if I don't go now I don't know when I get to go again?" (One day I walked half way to my car and went back into school for this very reason!)

-being able to change out of dress clothes and heels before 8:00 p.m.

I had time to think about totally random stuff....

-how much I love my time on the way to Tracey's in the morning with the boys. Listening to Dane talk to Reese and me is just so cute. In the afternoon he tells me about his day and ALWAYS asks about where his Daddy is. BUT, I also LOVE the short drive from Tracey's to school when I can listen to my music.

-I need a new place to shop. I am done with New York and Company. I have been shopping there for years. Looks like Eddie Bauer and Ann Taylor Loft are my new places to shop.

-I wish I could stop drinking Diet Mountain Dew, but I can't. I am working on bringing my big Tervis cup of water to bed with me and drinking water at night and in the morning. Just can't seem to stop my morning trip through the drive thru at The Point (Ste Gen mini mart) for my 32 oz. Diet Mountain Dew. Dane even says, "Mommy, you can get your soda before Tracey's." Oh well, maybe one day.

-Really wish I could find the Mom's One Line a Day Memory Book. I have been searching and everyone is sold out!

So, so nice to have Dave home with us in the evenings and for mommy to have a little time to think about these trivial things!

Reese is 3 Months Old

2012-01-17T16:01:00.002-06:00

It is hard to believe Reese is three months old today! With the holidays time seemed to fly by. We don't go back to the Dr. again until 4 months so we don't know offically how much he weighs or how long he is, but he is growing, growing, growing! All of the newborn clothes are too small, many of the 0-3 month clothes, and even some of the 3 month clothes as well. Reese is getting so long that clothes keep getting shorter and shorter! The best clothes for him now are 3-6 months. He is eating 6 oz. bottles, 4 times a day. He is wearing size 2 diapers, except when we are hanging out at home, then he wears size 1 diapers that we are trying to use up! He is a good little sleeper! He has moved his bedtime up to about 7:30 p.m. and sleeps like a little champ. He usually gets up about 6:00 a.m., though every once in a while he will get up a bit earlier.

He likes his bouncey seat and enjoys watching Dane dance and play in front of him. He likes to lay on the floor and moves around and kicks like crazy. He is a smiley little guy and we have started to hear little laughs from him more often now. We just bought a new play mat for him and I am excited to see if he likes it!

He has been going to Tracey's daycare with Dane for about two weeks now and he seems to like watching the other kids play and entertain him. Dane REALLY likes it that Reese goes with him now.

Reese's favorite spot to be seems to be his changing table. No matter when I take him in his room, if I lay him on his changing table, he starts to smile and gets so relaxed. He will lay there for quite some time looking around and smiling.

What a little love Reese is! He is just the perfect addition to our family!

A couple of pics

2012-01-15T20:45:00.003-06:00

I am getting ready to blog about our sweet boy that turns 3 months old on Tuesday and about my goals for 2012, but even with the past four days off I am still working on those posts. Here are a couple of pictures I found this weekend that I thought were just too cute not to share.

Reese with his Sophie, the giraffe. He is still working on gripping her, but when we lay her in his arms he will hold onto her and sometimes accidentally make her squeak!

Dane with his new big boy pants on. Still working on being able to wear them for any length of time. He has days he does awesome and then days we have to go to diapers by noon because we have no more clean underwear. It will come. He does look cute in his little pants though.

An after Christmas 50% off purchase.....Dave and Dane made this gingerbread train and he just loved it. He did eat it after he finished decorating it. It took about a week of little pieces for a treat everyday before I just thought it was time to throw the rest away.

Little Buddies

2012-01-11T19:44:00.002-06:00

Yesterday I asked Dane if he wanted to stay home and play with Daddy today and I would take Reese to Tracey's. He said, "No mommy, Reese will cry."

Dane was sound asleep at 6:45, so Reese and I headed out the door alone. Dave said when Dane got up he asked for Reese and I. Dave told him Reese was at Tracey's and I was at work. He told Dave the same thing, "Reese will cry daddy." Dave assured him Reese was fine and we would be home soon. They spent the day watching TV in bed, having lunch at McDonalds, playing, visiting the ducks, and throwing rocks in the lake.

Reese enjoyed a day at daycare with his little buddy, Lucas. Just a couple of months apart, I am sure these little guys will be good friends.

Two Adorable Boys!

2012-01-09T20:15:00.002-06:00

Our first three days back to school last week went really well! We are really back to reality this week with 5 full days! Usually by this time at Ste Gen. you hear the words "Snow Day" quite frequently. Thankfully we haven't had any and honestly, though one or two might be nice, I am ready to be back in the swing of things and get this year moving quickly.

I took a picture of the boys both Wednesday and Thursday last week before we headed out the door in the morning. Friday morning we were getting ready to head out and Dave put Reese in his carseat. Dane had a little meltdown and cried, "Picture, mommy, picture." So we wouldn't have to get Reese back out of the carseat I asked Dane if he could just sit next to the carseat. He amazingly agreed and sat right down and held his little brother's hand.
We have made a few changes in our bedtime routine the last few nights. When we started the routine at 6 weeks Reese was going to bed about 10:00. I moved it up 15 minutes every couple of days and we soon settled on a bed time of 8:30. Since Dane goes to bed about 8:00 and his room is right next to the boy's bathroom we decided Reese would take a bath in our tub so Dane would not be disturbed. Since then Reese keeps wanting to go to bed earlier and earlier. Now he rarely makes it til 8:00. Tonight Dane was so excited when we moved Reese's baby tub to "his" bathroom. It worked out pretty well. Dane took his bath at 7:00 as Reese played in his bouncey seat in the hallway. Once I got Dane in his pjs we moved Reese into the bathroom for his bath. After Reese had his bath we hung out in his room before he went to bed. It is funny because I play soft music and try to have a little calm down time when honestly Dane is moving as fast as he possibly can around the room to make sure he does not start to get tired.

Since Reese has started to smile, coo, and laugh a bit Dane seems to think he is ready to play. I have to remind him that he is a little baby.

Reese looks like he is thinking, "Leave me alone. I want to go to sleep."

I am sure in the blink of an eye I will have two boys running around this room.

Back to Reality!

2012-01-04T19:32:00.003-06:00

Today we got up and going for our first day back to school! This was Reese's very first day at Tracey's house. Our morning went well and we were ready to go right on time.

Little Reese ready to go!

Dane looks like he is telling Reese all about Tracey.
After seeing this face I thought Reese was going to be sad to leave me, but when we got to Tracey's he just looked around and was perfectly happy!

It was so cute! In the car on the way to Tracey's Reese was sound asleep. Dane was talking away to him saying, "Don't be scared Reese. It will be alright. Tracey is nice."

I got a text from Tracey about 10:00 saying that Reese was doing wonderful! She said he hadn't made a peep all morning. She also said that Dane was a VERY proud big brother.

When I walked into get the boys this afternoon Reese was having some tummy time on the floor with Tracey and his little buddy Lucas, who is just 2 months older than him. I am sure little Reese is making friends already!

Soaking Up Our Last Day

2012-01-03T18:24:00.002-06:00

It is a good thing that I LOVE my job! Tomorrow I take TWO sweet boys to Tracey's house for daycare and I head back to work.
Today was our last day together before we wake up to reality tomorrow. Dave was supposed to be home with us, but overtime called, so it was just me and the boys. We had a lazy day at home. Well the boys had a lazy day and since they were so lazy it actually gave me a chance to get some things taken care of.
Reese slept until 7:00 and Dane until 8:15 this morning. We played for a bit and both boys were in such good moods. I fed Reese his 10:00 bottle and we played some more. About 11:30 Reese was ready for his nap and he quickly fell asleep in his little chair.
Dane and I had lunch and then he laid down on the couch to watch the Cars Movie.

After about ten minutes he was asleep as well. Wow, a day in pjs and naps on the couch!

I planned dinner and made brownies for dessert (back to more healthy eating tomorrow). I started trying to find outfits for this week and realized that my dress pants haven't been worn in close to a year, so they needed washing and ironing to look fresh. I threw some loads in the wash and got the boys outfits ironed for the rest of the week.

Dane got up and was thrilled that I made brownies. He had one for a snack tonight as he watched a movie on the new portable DVD player from Mama and Papa and while I cleaned up the kitchen. He loved it! Our DVD player is on the basement TV, so I am hoping he will sit next to me at night and watch a movie while I straighten up upstairs in the evenings or record grades on the laptop.

I guess we are ready for tomorrow. Dane is pretty dang excited that Reese is going to Tracey's with him. He keeps telling me that he will help Tracey take care of Reese...I may have to warn her. I have 17 meals planned and everything ready to prepare them. I have our outfits ironed and ready for the rest of the week, luckily it is only 3 days. We just had such a good routine here at home. I could get so much done during nap time. Now I am preparing myself to come home with two boys at 3:30, play, feed Reese, make dinner, give baths, put them to bed, then start my nightly routine of grading papers, cleaning the house, doing laundry. Ohhhh, Dave working this 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. shift surely won't last too much longer! Back to reality!

Christmas Day!

2012-01-02T15:39:00.008-06:00

Christmas morning we woke up at my mom and dad's house. When Dane got up it was so cute. He said, "Santa came and flew away to the North Pole." He was ready to go downstairs and check out the tree.

Peeking as he came down the stairs
Seeing if Santa ate his cookies and Rudolph got the carrots

He was so ready to open presents!

He kept saying, "Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas." Then he said, "Happy Birthday Daddy". Haha!

Since he usually has a bit to wait until all of the cousins come over to open gifts I started the tradition at his first Christmas to give him a present to open. It is always a movie that he can watch while he waits.

The Frosts were the first to arrive and Dane was excited when Laney was showing him her new game. I'm not really sure what it was, but he loved it!

All seven of the cousins in their Christmas PJs!

While we had brunch little Reese took a nap.

Christmas nap!

So excited and ready to open gifts!

My two sweet boys!

Waiting patiently!

Reese's first Christmas gift on Christmas morning.

Dane's first gift

Everyone was checking out Joe's gift!

Little Joe

Group work to carry a gift!

Towards the end Dane was getting tired!

I wonder why, only 19 people opening gifts!

Daddy got his Blu-Ray Player from Mama and Papa.

Tom and Katie holding sleeping babies!

We all changed from our Christmas PJs and got ready to go to my Grandma's for Christmas.

Dane and Reese both fell asleep on the way there and took a good nap on their Great Grandma's bed.

We started the afternoon out with a game of Headbands.

Taylor sure didn't want her picture taken playing the game.

It was warmer Christmas afternoon so the kids went out to play.

What a sweet boy!

Excited to open presents!

Opening his gift from Great Grandma

Full house!

After dinner the kids played "Pin the Nose on the Reindeer."

A fun, wild, family Christmas! Dane had a ball and was on a Christmas Detox after eating great food and being spoiled for several days!

Christmas Eve

2012-01-02T11:56:00.007-06:00

Christmas Eve morning we got up and headed up to Troy, IL to have Christmas with Dave's parents and his sister's family.

Reese enjoyed being held a lot!

After lunch we opened presents.
Dane and Daddy checking out his new trucks.

More trucks!

Airplanes

Reese napping in Aunt Lisa's arms.

We left late afternoon and head back to Kirkwood for Christmas Eve Church service. Once we got to Kirkwood Dane and Reese were both sound asleep. Since we knew we had a full night ahead of us we decided to let the boys sleep. I went to church with Katie and my mom and Dave took the boys back to my parent's house for a nap.

When I got home from church they were well rested and ready for the evening.

Our family before Christmas Eve dinner

The boys- Dane was just so excited!

Mama with her grandchildren, missing Claire on Christmas Eve.

Dane opening his gift from my Aunt Janice and Uncle Chris.

Mama gave out the Christmas Eve pjs.

The boys got matching pjs.

So excited for Christmas!

Checking out his lunch bag from Aunt Janice and Uncle Chris.

A toolbox...he walks around the house saying, "Fixing mommy's house."

Hanging out with "Tay-Tay" and "Lou Lou".

Getting ready to put out cookies for Santa and a carrot for Rudolph.

Here you go Santa!

I don't think I have ever seen Dane as excited and wild as he was Christmas Eve. He just loved every second of the evening. He was ready to go to bed so Santa would come!

Christmas at our House

2011-12-29T10:37:00.007-06:00

Santa came to our house last Thursday night, the 23rd. We started out the evening with a visit from our friends, the Mercers, from down the street. Dane just loves Lauren. She is so good to him. They decorated cookies together while I supervised and Latesha, Lauren's mom, held Reese. Lauren was so kind when Dane would dump a whole pile of sprinkles in one spot.

He loved eating the icing!

His hair is a little crazy because when Lauren got to our house Dane was still napping. He jumped up so quick when I told him Lauren was there.
Dane's cookies

It was funny because since I watched Dane decorate his cookies (licking the knife, then icing, then putting his little fingers all over the cookies) there is no way I could eat his. Lauren iced quite a few and left some at the house. I could eat those. The next morning several of Dane's were missing.....Dave got hungry in the middle of the night. I laughed and told him if he saw Dane decorate them he probably wouldn't have eaten them. He didn't really seem to care.

Dane was so sad when Lauren had to leave. He kept asking her, "Please stay." I distracted him by reminding him we had to get ready for Santa to visit.

Once Dane and Reese were bathed and in their pjs I tried to take a picture of them by the tree. Reese was crying a bit and Dane was trying to calm him. Finally Dane said, "Take him mommy. He's crying."

We laid Reese on a pillow, which he didn't like either. He just wanted to go to bed!

Dane had his cookies on a plate for Santa and he was excited.

He then went to sprinkle out his reindeer food that he got from Santa on the Santa Express.

He sprinkled it on the patio.

Finally, he was ready for bed. He went to bed really well and I was surprised because he was so excited.

Not long after that Santa delievered all of the gifts.

The next morning I got up with Reese at 6:00. He took his morning bottle and I kept waiting for Dane to call my name. About 7:00 Reese fell back asleep and Dane was still sleeping. I ended up laying in bed and fell asleep as well. It was about 8:15 when I heard Dane call my name. Right away he yelled, "Santa" and went running down the hall.

Checking out the presents

I wanted to get his picture next to the tree and he just couldn't take his eyes off the presents.

Finally, time to open. We checked the tag together to find one for Dane.

He loved it that Santa used "Thomas the Train" wrapping paper.

He helped Reese open his gifts.

After he would open one he would say, "Anymore for Dane?"

I loved watching him get so excited.

He piled all of Reese's gifts on and around his chair.

Reese slept through the entire present opening.

Last thing to open, a stocking.

It was so fun to have the magic of Christmas in our house this year. I can only imagine how he will be in the next few years and the fun we will have with our two sweet boys!

Random Pictures from December

2011-12-28T16:46:00.004-06:00

I am getting ready to go through my many, many pictures from our Christmas Celebrations! We celebrated here on the 23rd, at Dave's sister's house Christmas Eve Day, at my parent's house on Christmas Eve with my dad's family, Christmas Morning at my parent's house with my siblings, and Christmas Day at my Grandma's house. We had a wonderful holiday and I can't wait to look at all the pictures and remember it all!

Here are some random December pictures.............

The boys playing in Dane's room before going to bed.

Reese never knows if he is going to get a sweet kiss or a more aggressive love pat.

Dane made a stocking at Tracey's house and he just loved it.
Dane got Elf on a Shelf from my parents for Saint Nick's Day. This is before Dave read the book Elf on a Shelf to Dane. We didn't know we weren't supposed to touch the Elf.

The next morning the Elf was up high and safe from a little boy that loved him so much!

Santa window clings! Another gift from my parents for St. Nick's Day. Dane loved these window clings and he spent hours and hours pulling the chairs from the dinning room table over to the sliding glass door so he could play with them. My window has so much little fingerprints on it!

Dressed in his Santa hat and shirt for the daycare Christmas party!

Taking Christmas pictures this year was quite the ordeal. I thought we would do it in the comfort of home so that we could do it whenever we all seemed to be in a good mood and up for it. We attempted twice and got a couple of good pictures to share. Here are some pictures to show the craziness of the photo shoot.

Dane deciding he wanted to give Reese a kiss. Reese not really wanting one!

When Reese started crying Dane kissed his hand to try to comfort him.

A kiss on the forehead to try to soothe a screaming baby brother!

Who knows what he is trying to do here!

Our Lady of the Snows-Way of Lights

2011-12-28T10:42:00.006-06:00

Last Tuesday my mom, dad, Katie, Dave, and I took the boys to the Way of Lights at Our Lady of the Snows. We had dinner at McCallisters first and then headed over.

Our first stop was for a pony ride and the petting zoo. Dane loves riding ponies and he is now at the point where he doesn't want/need Dave to hold his hand as he rides.

He reached down to pet it before he got off.

We then went over to the petting zoo. Dane fed the animals some carrots.

He loved it! After he would feed them he would jump up and down. He was so excited!

We then went inside so Dane could play at the Childrens Village.

He decorated a star.

After Dane played for a bit inside we went back outside to go through the light display. Little Reese just enjoyed the night snuggled up in his carseat.

Santa Express

2011-12-23T12:23:00.007-06:00

Dane absolutely LOVES trains. He gets so excited to go over to Trey's house because Trey has a TON of trains. For his birthday he got a train track and his first Thomas the Train train. We have added a couple of pieces here and there. He loves to build the track and move the train along as he makes the sounds and yells, "All Aboard." When I pick him up from Tracey's he will point and say, "Go that way mommy. See train."

When Dane was just 4 months old we went to ride the Polar Express. I don't remember exactly where it was, but it was about 3 hours away. It was a fun trip!

This year, especially with Dane's love for trains, I couldn't wait for him to watch the movie, The Polar Express. I decided I wanted to take him on a Christmas train ride. I had heard of the Santa Express in Jackson, Missouri. We decided to give it a try this year.

Sunday, December 18th, my mom, dad, Kara, Claire, Dane, Reese, and I headed down for the 1:00 train ride. We all had a great time! Dane was so excited when we got on the train.

He sat on Papa's lap and kept saying, "Let's get moving."

One thing I loved about this train ride was that there was so much for the kids to do during the ride. They passed out a picture of Thomas the Train and crayons so the kids could color. Dane loved holding on to this little stocking full of crayons.

He kept looking out the window waiting for us to move.

The conductor explained the whistles that would blow. I had to warn Dane about this because he does not like loud noises. By the time the train started going he would just say, "The loud noise is just the train." He was holding onto our ticket.

Once we started going he just kept looking out the window.

We got a little bit down the track and we heard a noise on the roof. They said Santa and his reindeer had landed on top of the train. Dane kept looking up, hoping to see something. He was so excited when Santa got on the train. He kept saying, "Sit on Santa's lap."

There was also a bear, which I think was the train's mascot.

I just loved watching how excited he was!

Aunt Kara and Claire

Santa was set up in one of the cars. The volunteers on the train would come get one family at a time and walk them up to have their time with Santa. Santa was so excited to see everyone. He gave everyone Reindeer Food to put out on Christmas Eve.

Another activity they had was facepainting. Claire and Dane got painted up like Rudolph.

The train ride was 2 hours. We got on at 1:00. At 2:00 it was time for Reese to eat. He loved sleeping on the train, but after I fed him he was wide awake for the rest of the ride.

Big Yawns!

Mama took the kids back and they got a toy train to take home.

The train ride was through the outskirts of Jackson. We saw some horses and cows on our ride. Dane and Claire loved looking out the windows.

There were cookies and hot chocolate.

Christmas Cheers!

Hanging out with Mama during the ride.

Also during the ride we played Christmas Bingo, Santa read the Polar Express, and some sang Christmas Carols.

Then Santa had to get ready to get off at his stop.

Waving goodbye to Santa.

Reese was sound asleep when it was time for our family to go see Santa so I left him with my dad while I took Dane up. As Santa was leaving the train he saw Reese and said, "Oh, I missed seeing this little guy." He asked if he could hold him. I thought that was so sweet.

As we got off the train Dane just kept checking it out. He loved it!

We may have to take a little train ride this summer.

I can't wait to do this again next year! It was such a fun trip and there was so much for the kids to do on the train. Dane definitely had a blast!

Early Christmas

2011-12-22T10:49:00.004-06:00

My brother, T.J., and my sister in law, Ashley, will be out of town with her mom and grandparents this Christmas, so we had an early celebration last Saturday at their house.

As soon as we got to their house it was time for Reese to eat. My grandma fed him and he just stared at her the whole time.
Claire loves Reese and was wishing he could drink out of her Christmas cup.

The cousins together for a picture before present time.

Reese was the first of the nieces and nephews to open his gift from Aunt Ashley and Uncle T.J.

Dane was next and he was so excited!

Dane says firetruck several times a day and rides around the house on his little firetruck with his fire hat on. He was excited to have another firetruck!

Silly, happy boy!

Claire got dress up clothes and was all dressed up for the rest of the night.

We had a fun night celebrating and will miss Aunt Ashley and Uncle T.J. on Christmas!

We are really excited that we will have Baby Rau with us to celebrate next year!

2 Months

2011-12-19T16:52:00.004-06:00

Sweet baby Reese is 2 months old. Time is going by so fast! He is still such a happy, calm baby. He has started to smile and it is the sweetest thing. He will just lay on the floor, look around the room, and smile away! He is very alert. His eyes are usually wide open and he looks scared to death. Don't know if he is watching for Dane or what!

We started Reese on a schedule after his 6 week appointment and he is doing so awesome! He is so much more alert and happy since we started it. He eats every 4 hours during the day. A bedtime routine was just what his boy wanted (as well as his mom). We did the routine one night and he has been going to bed every night with very little, if any crying at all. He just falls right to sleep on his own, in his bed. He goes to bed at 8:30 right now and was getting up at 1:00 a.m. to eat. The past two nights he has slept right through the 1:00 feeding and woke up between 5 and 5:30 a.m. I will go in and rub his belly or head and he goes back to sleep until 6:00 a.m. I don't know how much longer he will be staying up until 8:30. Now that he is more alert and active during the day he seems to be getting fussy about 8 or 8:15 and is ready for bed.

Reese's naps are getting pretty predictable as well. He is on a pretty good eat, play, sleep schedule. He will nap anywhere; in his crib, on the floor, in his bouncey seat or the swing. I usually put him in his crib for the longest nap of the day.

Reese is getting so big that I had to pack up all of the newborn clothes and return four boxes of size 1 diapers. We have a box of 276 size 1 diapers open right now and I am just hoping we can use all of them before he needs size 2!

Reese had his first babysitter for an extended period of time. He went with Aunt Katie when Dane went to play with Tom's nephew (Katie's soon to be nephew), Connor. Then he spent the night at Mama and Papa's for the first time without Mommy and Daddy.

Dane continues to "love" on Reese ALOT! Sometimes he is real gentle on his own and other times we have to remind him.

This past month Reese has celebrated family birthdays and enjoyed family traditions of the holiday season. He went to cookie making at his great grandma's house, saw Santa at the Lake Forest Kids Christmas Party, went for a ride on Santa Express, and celebrated one family Christmas already.

It is hard to believe that we will spend our First Christmas as a family of four in just a few days. We are excited and looking forward to lots of Christmasy fun this week. I know the time will fly by.

I will return to work on January 4th and Reese will join Dane at Tracey's everyday. It is going to be strange taking two sweet boys into daycare. So thankful we have her to watch Reese as well.

Happy 2 Months Buddy! You have been so much fun to have with us and we love spending every second with you!

Lake Forest Kids Christmas Party

2011-12-12T11:01:00.001-06:00

This past Saturday was the Lake Forest Kids Christmas Party. I was in charge of it and had so many cute ideas, but things have been a little crazy here, so I had to do a simpler party than I would have liked. I am writing all of the ideas down for next year though!

The party was at 10:00 in the morning, so we had munkin donuts from Dunkin Donuts, fruit, and milk. The kids each had a craft to do. The highlight of the party was a visit from Mr. and Mrs. Claus.

When it was Dane's turn he was excited to see Santa, but said, "Hold my hand mommy."

He had told me he wanted trucks and trains for Christmas, but when he got to Santa he just smiled.
When Reese went up to see Santa and Mrs. Claus Dane was so worried about why Reese wasn't holding his present that I couldn't get Dane to look at the camera.

Our family at the Christmas Party.

I didn't get any pictures of the tables, Dane with his friends, or the kids making the crafts. I was busy with food and handing the gifts to Santa and Dave took pictures of all of the kids as they sat on Santa's lap. Thank goodness to some friends who held Reese while we took care of some things. It was a fun party for the kids and we enjoyed seeing our friends.

Cooking Making!

2011-12-11T09:14:00.004-06:00

This past Friday Dane, Reese, and I gathered at my Grandma's house with my mom, sisters, nieces, and nephew for our Annual Christmas Cookie Making. I was busy baking away, so I don't have any pictures of the adults or any of the delicious treats we baked up. Every once in a while I would stop baking and snap a couple of pictures of the kiddos, who were as wild as ever and loving every minute of their day together.

Claire loves "Baby Reese" as she always sweetly whispers to him

This little man was so alert all day. He seemed to have his eyes wide open, watching for a big brother or cousin that may come up and kiss or grab him at any time!
Finally got Dane to kind of sit still for a picture.

Mom sat and watched Polar Express with the kids for a bit so we could finish up a batch of cookies before lunch.

Sweet boy can slip in a nap anywhere!

My Grandma made her traditional lunch for all of us and then we started the kids' cookies. Kara supervised while Amy and I finished up some of our cookies from the morning.

Concentrating as he cuts out a cookie.

Everyone was so patient waiting their turn.

We had a great day! The kids LOVE going to my Grandma's house. We made gooey butter, chocolate gooey butter, toffee, cake balls, peanut butter fudge cookies, and Oreo balls.

Party Weekend!

2011-12-05T10:22:00.006-06:00

We partied all weekend!

We celebrated Joe's First Birthday on Saturday.

My sister had a lunch to celebrate and then we opened presents.

Joe was very excited when it was time for cake!

He started using just one hand.

After a bit he decided to just dig in using both hands.

He sure enjoyed his cake.

Trey and Joe winding down after the party.

Joe was worn out from all the excitement!

Dane had a blast! I don't have any pictures of him from the day because ran and ran the entire time. He played with "the big kids", as he kept calling them.

After naps for Dane, Reese, and Dave we got ready to head to our second party. I don't have any pictures from our evening party, but it was a fun evening celebrating my sister's 40th birthday! Once again we had great food, a good time, and Dane ran with the big kids!

Once we got back to my mom and dad's house for the night the party seemed to continue for Dane. All of the cousins spent the night and he was just too excited to sleep! He would just talk and talk in bed just to keep himself awake.

Dane recovered from the party day on Sunday with a 3 hour nap!

Reese Is 6 Weeks Old

2011-12-01T22:00:00.003-06:00

I had originally done a one month post and scheduled it to post. I didn't realize until a week later that it never posted.

We had Reese's 6 week appointment on Monday, so I figured now that I have stats I will go ahead and post a 6 week update.

Reese was 6 weeks on Monday, November 28th. He weighs 12 lbs, 2 oz (55%itle), and is 21 3/4 inches long (25%itle). His little head is only in the 10%itle. I looked at Dane's stats to compare a little bit. Dane had an appointment when he was 8 weeks instead of 6. Reese is shorter, but weighs more at 6 weeks than Dane did at 8 weeks. Dane also has always had a big head. He was always 80%itle.

Reese is now out of newborn diapers and newborn clothes. We are in size 1 diapers and wearing 0-3 month clothes.

Tonight is Reese's first night sleeping in his crib in his room. He has napped there a couple of times. We are starting to get him on a schedule. I like routine and figured I don't want to get him in a routine of sleeping in our room.

Reese has transitioned to eating every four hours. He takes 6 oz., 4 times a day. He is still waking up at night for a night time feeding at least once, many times twice a night.

Our little guy is transitioning well to a eat, play, sleep schedule. He loves to lay on his play mat and look around. He has to be protected from Dane during this time as Dane likes to lay next to him, sometimes a little too close. Lately he loves to sit in his bouncey seat or lay on the floor by the Christmas tree and look at the lights. He also loves the swing, but it puts him right to sleep so we have to watch how much time he spends in it.

He loves a warm bath at night. If he is ever a little cranky before bed I can put him in the tub and he totally relaxes.

Reese has slept over at Mama and Papa's house many times already! He always gets lots of attention when we are there.

Reese has celebrated two holidays with us, Halloween and Thanksgiving. We are looking forward to the first Christmas season with our sweet boy.

We are so happy that Reese is such a content little guy. We love him to pieces!

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-30T19:24:00.004-06:00

It wasn't the best Thanksgiving. Dave worked, I was with Dane, and Reese was at my parents. I managed to get a couple of pictures of our little guys. We are so thankful for these sweet little boys!

Dane wearing his Kirkwood-Webster Turkey Day Football shirt, even though we didn't make it to the football game.

Our boys....yes, Reese looks scared to death!
Thankful to be brothers!

Thanks to Aunt Katie for taking some pictures of Reese's First Thanksgiving.

I am guessing he had a great Thanksgiving and was worn out!

Christmas Performance

2011-11-30T11:04:00.003-06:00

On Sunday, the 20th, Taylor had to perform at a nursery in Milstadt. Amy told us it was decorated for Christmas and Santa would be there as well. My Mom, Dad, Dane, Reese, and I decided to go watch Taylor and see Santa.

First we watched Taylor dance. She did a great job! Dane sat on Papa's lap the entire performance, which was about a half hour, and was so still. He just stared at the dancers.
There were cookies and drinks, which Dane loved. We then headed over to see Santa. I was holding Reese and Santa just reached right out and held him, so we all sat down for a picture.

The decorations were so pretty.

It was a fun, festive morning!

Kirkwood Christmas

2011-11-29T12:49:00.004-06:00

Saturday, November 19th, we spent the morning in Downtown Kirkwood for Christmas in Kirkwood. We met the Frosts, Aunt Kara and Claire, Aunt Tammy and Joe, and Mama at the train station. The weather was pretty nice, so it wasn't bad waiting in line to see Santa. Dane was entertained by his cousins while he waited.

My little man is always more interested in what is going on around him than he is in looking at me. He said hi to Santa and gave him a five before leaving his lap.

Claire was all dressed up in her Christmas dress for Santa.
After seeing Santa we had cookies and hot chocolate and then went inside to see Mrs. Claus and write letters to Santa. Mama helped Dane with his letter.

Then Delaney helped him mail his letter.

The whole time little Reese just hung out.......

...........and took little naps.

That evening we all hung out at Mama and Papa's and ordered pizza. Dane watched a movie with Delaney and Trey.

Little buddies hanging out

Joe was so happy playing in his exersaucer!

Fun day with family!

A Fun Day for Dane and Daddy!

2011-11-29T10:56:00.004-06:00

Playing catch up once again!

The second weekend in November Aunt Katie and Uncle Tom came down for a visit. Dave, Dane, Katie, and Tom went for a hike at Hawn State Park. I stayed home with little Reese, but from what I heard and from these pictures I know Dane had an awesome time. He loves to be outside and even though it was a little chilly he loved the hike.

Katie and Tom said Dane smiled the entire time. He is definitely an outdoorsy guy!

These Days...

2011-11-09T19:53:00.002-06:00

Right now we have two very different boys and we couldn't be happier!

Reese, for the most part, is laid back and just goes with the flow. He is either sleeping or hanging out and looking around. Boy, he looks so long in this picture.

He is spending more and more time being alert.

Our other little man is at a stage in his life where I don't think it is possible to have any more energy. He definitely keeps us on our toes! For example, Sunday he came walking to me with a very full pitcher of Orange Juice. I quickly grabbed it, shocked as to how he actually got it. Then it continued for the rest of the day Sunday and Monday. He seemed to love to check out what is in the refrigerator and bring me tubs of butter, cream cheese, tortilla shells. I found him climbing the refrigerator shelves several times. The good and bad part is that when he opened the refrigerator he would accidentally hit the wall with the door, which I would hear, and this would alert me as to what he was doing.

So Tuesday, when I had to run to Target, I picked up something to help keep me sane and save my wall and refrigerator door........

We now have a child lock on our refrigerator.

When Dane is home, it is on. He was a bit distressed when he came home and found out he couldn't get into the refrigerator. He tried a few times, but seemed to learn quick enough he was not getting in.
Totally worth the $4.00 after juggling a newborn, 2 qts of OJ, and a very strong and determined 2 year old one too many times in the past 2 days.

Reese's First Bath

2011-11-08T13:42:00.002-06:00

Reese was finally ready for his first bath. He only cried when we took off his clothes before we put him in the water. Once he got in he was really relaxed in the water.

Just hanging out
Dane was so, so excited about helping to give Reese a bath. He helped me put the baby tub in the big bathtub and turned on the water.

Once Reese was actually in the water Dane lost control.

He was so excited about Reese taking a bath that he couldn't even sit still for a picture.

Sweet, clean baby boy!

Once he got dried off, lotioned up, and in little footy pjs we cuddled up to read a story with Dane.

There isn't anything better than two freshly bathed boys to cuddle with.

Brothers Hanging Out at Home

2011-11-06T09:20:00.000-06:00

Some random pictures of the boys as we hang out at home together......

Dane reading to Reese

Sometimes Dane wants to love on his brother so much we have to provide Reese some protection.
One of Dane's favorite things to do is to bring the bottle to Dave or I and help us feed Reese.

Dane takes great care of his baby doll.

Dane kept yelling, "Hold little brother."

As I was taking this picture Dane kept saying, "Gentle, Gentle" over and over. He must hear me tell him that a lot.

Can't wait to watch these sweet boys grow up together!

Just Like Daddy

2011-11-05T15:18:00.000-05:00

When Dave works doubles at work and needs to sleep during the day he always puts on a sock hat and pulls it down over his eyes.

The other day I was doing some work and looked up to check on Reese. He was sleeping so soundly with his hat down over his eyes, just like his daddy.

Halloween 2011

2011-11-04T10:23:00.006-05:00

We spent Halloween in Kirkwood this year. Everyone gathered at my mom and dad's house for dinner Monday afternoon. The kids were so excited!

I got Dane to eat a little bit, but he was so excited. He kept saying, "Knock on doors."

He was ready to go Trick or Treating.
After we ate everyone got dressed in their costumes....even Aunt Katie.

Reese didn't dress up, but he joined the kids for a picture with his "First Halloween" shirt on.

Dane loved this witch in my mom and dad's front yard.

Everytime we would go to their house for the past month he would yell, "Mama's witch."

Claire dressed as a sweet little witch.

When I asked Dane if he would hold Reese so I could get their picture he just kept saying, "Go Trick or Treating." I couldn't get him to focus on the camera.

My sweet family

Finally, we headed out to Trick or Treat. We had quite the crew-Aunt Amy, Uncle Darnel, Trey, Laney, Aunt Kara, Claire, my mom, Aunt Katie, Dave, Dane, and me! My dad stayed home with Reese and Uncle Steve met up with us later.

Daddy and Dane

Katie, as Waldo.

Aunt Katie had a great time hiding and having people play "Where's Waldo?" as we walked.

She enjoyed her Halloween!

It didn't take long for Dane to know exactly what to do.

He had an absolute ball!

Just like when we were kids....Claire and Dane barely got in the house and they were ready for some candy!

Katie took Dane with her to go over to see Tom's sister's little boy, Connor.

Little cuties!

What a fun Halloween night!

Fall Weekend

2011-11-03T13:56:00.007-05:00

We spent last weekend at my parent's house. I was kind of worried about being away from home with a 2 week old baby, but it actually worked out very well. Dane stayed busy playing with his cousins, with Aunts, Uncles, and Grandparents around both Reese and Dane got lots of attention, and I was able to recover a bit more and came home feeling better and more rested.

We started out Saturday morning by going to Kirkwood High School to watch Taylor perform at the football game. Dane and I went in with my mom and my dad stayed in the car with Reese. Claire was there as well and she brought snacks that she shared with Dane.

They loved watching the game.
We enjoyed watching Taylor perform.

Since it was Halloween they did a dance to the song, "Thriller."

After the game we went back to Mama and Papa's house for a quick lunch. Then my dad watched Reese while my mom and I took Dane and met Aunt Amy, Uncle Darnel, and the kids at the Kirkwood Farmer's Market Pumpkin Patch to play.

Dane loved riding the little horse.

Claire, Dane, and Trey ran and ran the whole time we were there.

With Trey there with them they played on the bigger playset.

After playing for a while they took a break and had Halloween cupcakes that Aunt Amy had brought with her.

After playing for a while we headed back to Mama and Papa's house and took naps. When Dane woke up we got ready for Aunt Amy, Uncle Darnel, and the kids to come over for dinner and pumpkin carving.

Uncle Darnel took charge of the project.

Dane wasn't so sure about scooping out the insides.

Once he saw Trey and Laney do it he decided to try it.

The finished product!

Sunday morning Dane waited for Aunt Katie to come home from her camping trip. Once she did he helped her clean up all of her camping gear. He loved it when she set her tent up in the driveway.

Sunday afternoon Katie, Dane, and I went to watch Laney play volleyball. My grandma was there, but I had left Reese at home with my dad so she only got to see Dane. Monday morning we got up and my mom, Dane, Reese, and I went over to visit my Grandma so she could see Reese.

Reese and his Great-Grandma

We had a nice weekend spending lots of time with family.

Lake Forest Trunk or Treat and Halloween Party

2011-11-02T11:01:00.007-05:00

The Saturday after I had Reese, October 22nd, we had our neighborhood Trunk or Treat and Halloween Party. I was so thankful for my good friend, Grace, and my mom who planned a majority of the party and for Dave, who ran lots of errands. I had to do very, very little, which was good since I had a 5 day old baby at home!

My mom and dad came down on Friday afternoon and helped decorate the hall. They then came back on Saturday and brought Claire along with them for the party.

The weather was absolutely gorgeous and perfect for Trunk or Treat! We have lots and lots of little ones in our neighborhood. There were 14 kids age 4 and under! Crazy thing is that we only have 4 girls in the whole crew!

My mom, dad, and Dave took Claire and Dane up for the Trunk or Treat. Dave decorated our trunk and bought the candy to pass out!

Enjoying trunk or treat!

Dane and his little friend sitting down for a candy break
After Trunk or Treat my mom and dad came back to the house and my dad stayed with Reese so my mom could take me to watch Dane at the Halloween Party.

Claire and Dane had Capri Suns while waiting for the party to start.

Game Time!

Dane loved grabbing his pumpkin out of the water!

We had hotdogs, chili, orange drink, and lots of treats at the party.

Pin the nose on the witch!

I was surprised Dane didn't mind getting blindfolded.

Dave picked him up so he could put his sticker on the witch.

Dane's monkey costume had a banana attached.

He chewed on the banana as he waited his turn for the next game.

Pumpkin Sweep!

Dane used the broom to push the pumpkin down and back!

Very smart idea!

Time for the costume contest.

He is still chewing on that banana!

Claire won a gift card to DQ for her costume!

Musical chairs!

The kids had to find a bat to step on when the music stopped.

Pumpkin decorating!

Claire decorating her pumpkin.

It was a fun Halloween Party!

I am glad I was able to get out of the house for a bit and watch Dane have such a good time.

Cardinal Fans!

2011-10-31T15:15:00.002-05:00

We enjoyed watching the Playoff Games with family and friends this year! Friday night we celebrated the Cardinals big win with our friends in the neighborhood. We love it that we have added another Cardinal Fan to our family!

Forest Park Forever 2011

2011-10-27T13:38:00.007-05:00

Once again this year we were able to be my parent's guests at the Forest Park Forever Fall Family Fest. It was Sunday, October 16th and it was a gorgeous day out.

This is a picture of Dane two years ago at his first Forest Park Family Fest.

He slept during most of it.

Our last picture of our family of 3, less than 24 hours before Reese joined us.
There were family pictures, food, crafts, a petting zoo, games, and pony rides. As you can see from the pictures below Dane loved the pony rides and the petting zoo the most.

His time on the pony

Petting the Alpacas and Llamas

Checking out the chickens

The owner said the kids could get in the fenced area.

Dane wanted right in.

After we took time to do a craft, play on the playground, and have snacks Dane was ready for another pony ride.

We look forward to this every year. Next year Reese will be just about a year old and ready to join in the fun.

Our Family of 4!!

2011-10-24T15:01:00.014-05:00

We have had a very busy fall. I have lots of pictures to share, time has been flying by........
but first I had to announce that we are a family of 4!

Last Sunday night Dave, Dane, and I gathered with my family at my parent's house to have dinner and watch the Cardinals Game. Dave and I were scheduled to be at Missouri Baptist at midnight on Sunday night to be induced. I called our house about 6:00 p.m. to check our answering machine and there happened to be a message from Missouri Baptist. When I called back they told us they were ready for us and asked us to come in early!

Dave ate dinner and my sister gave me a quick pedicure and we headed to the hospital. We got there about 8:30 and watched the Cardinals Game to pass time while the nurses got everything ready. Everything was ready to start right when the game ended. Things went very smoothly except for about 30 minutes when I waited too long to ask for my epidural and the anaesthesiologist was tied up for a bit. Things went so well in fact, that I was a little surprised when the nurse said, "Dr. Jostes is on his way." We quickly called my mom because she likes to be at the hospital when the baby is born. We called her at 6:30 a.m. and at 7:16 a.m......

Reese Henderson Evelsizer was born!

He weighed 8 lbs. 1 oz. and was 21 3/4 inches long!

He was also lucky enough to be born on his Papa's birthday!

Dave cutting the cord.
Reese's footprint....a Missouri Baptist tradition.

We think he looks just like his big brother, Dane!

My first look at my sweet baby boy.

Daddy, Mommy, and Reese

My mom got to the hospital right before he was born.Dane was hanging out with Aunt Katie waiting for the call that his little brother had arrived.

He was excited to ride in the elevator to the 3rd floor!

My family waiting in the waiting room to see Baby Reese.

Dane with his cousins and Aunt Katie.

Finally got to see my big boy!

First look at his baby brother

Holding Reese for the first timeChecking Reese out!

He was just so excited that Dave and I had to keep a close watch.

Daddy with his two boys!

Our first picture of our family of 4!

Dane went out for lunch and he came back to hold Reese again.

Leaning down for a kiss

Dane wanted to see Reese's feet.

Dane LOVED coming to the hospital! He would get a little wild!

My three boys!

Loving on Reese again!

We had lots of visitors come see Reese.

My mom and dad

It was my dad's birthday!

Mama holding Reese

Papa holding Reese

Aunt Katie

My sisters

Aunt Tammy

Aunt Amy

Trey checking out Reese with Aunt Katie

Reese with his cousins

Aunt Kara and Claire

Aunt Kara with Mommy and Reese

Rhonda with Reese and Dane

We also had visits from Heather Baker and Uncle T.J. and Aunt Ashley.

We were ready to go home on Wednesday morning!

Reese is ready to go pick up his big brother, Dane and go home!We are so thankful for the quick and safe delivery for Mommy and Reese.

We are settling in at home now and enjoying being a family of 4!

Sunday

2011-10-09T21:18:00.003-05:00

Today when Dane woke up from nap we made some sugar cookies for him to decorate. He really didn't do much decorating, but loved the icing and putting a few sprinkles on each cookie.

He ate more icing than he put on the cookies.
He was proud of his cookies though.

He wanted me to sit across from his the whole time he decorated and kept saying,

"Cheese Mommy."

He ate two of the cookies he decorated and gave the last one to Max.

Unless something changes, tomorrow will be our last Dr. appointment before our baby boy comes. We have our carseats installed, the pack and play up, the Dual Stroller ready to go, and the room ready, minus one lamp shade (my mom gave me a white lamp and I planned to get a navy blue shade, who knew it would be so hard to find!)

We are ready for our sweet boy to be here. Dane says nightly, "Come out baby."

Last week the Dr. told me to slow down. I made it through this past week. If I make it through one more week, a week from tonight, at midnight, we will head to the hospital to be induced.

Our little guy will be here a little early, but with the progress that I am already making and some blood pressure issues the Dr. feels an induction a week early is necessary.

We are excited and ready to be a family of 4!

Fall Fun

2011-10-05T20:22:00.005-05:00

We spent the entire past weekend in Kirkwood. Friday night we had dinner with my Grandma for her birthday, which was Saturday. Saturday my mom and I attended the wedding of one of my best friends from high school. Dane spent the day with Aunt Kara and Claire. They spent some time at a Fall Festival near Aunt Kara's house. Kara said they had a blast!

Decorating a pumpkin

Moved to paint!
I thought she was pretty brave to paint with two 2 year olds!

Played on the playground a bit

Saw a horse, which Kara said Dane loved!

So thankful that Kara could watch Dane, that he had fun, and that she said he was really good!

Sunday afternoon my mom, dad, and I took Dane up to the Kirkwood Farmer's Market.

There were tractors to ride.

Dane couldn't reach the pedals, but my mom pushed him around and he had a ball.

We then headed over to the fall fort to play for a bit.

This fort was just his size.

He went down the slide a couple of times.

He then noticed the bigger, curvier, slide and went to the big fort. He had fun, but it made me a bit too nervous. There were a lot of older kids playing on the big fort. Dane was brave and climbed right up on his own, but since I couldn't go with him I talked him back over to the smaller fort.

Saturday, September 17th

2011-09-22T21:55:00.006-05:00

Last Saturday, the 17th, we went to Kirkwood for the Annual Greentree Parade and Festival. Katie and Tom live on the parade route so they invited everyone over for breakfast before the parade. Lots of delicious food! After we ate we headed outside to watch the parade.

Since we had just been to the September 11th Remembrance Parade the week before Dane remembered to wave at the people in the parade.

He had a ball running around the front yard with Claire and Tom's little nephew, Connor.
He loved his balloon.

We cheered for Taylor as she walked by with the Kirkwood High Pom Pon Squad.

Delaney and Trey, along with Amy and Darnel, walked with the Robinson Elementary float.

Little Joe, Claire, and Dane sat on the curb to watch the parade and get some candy.

Dane loved the parade and stayed on the curb the whole time.

We then spent the afternoon at the park with my mom, sisters, and nieces, and nephews. Dane was riding in the wagon back to Aunt Katie's house and was falling asleep sitting up. Aunt Tammy carried him several blocks so he could sleep.

When Dane woke up from his nap we headed down to Forest Park with Mama and Papa to see the September 11th Memorial. It was absolutely amazing.

Dane couldn't believe all of the flags.

He kept pointing at them.

Each flag was labeled with the name, age, city, and state. Some had a picture as well.

The flags were beautiful blowing in the wind.

Dane and Mama walked all the way to the bottom of the hill and then he ran back up.

Checking out the flags with Papa.

Finding a sculpture on our way to the car

There were some older kids playing on it when we got there. Once they got off Dane did everything he saw them do.

Between the flags and the sculpture he didn't really want to leave.

September 11th Remembrance Day Parade

2011-09-21T17:10:00.002-05:00

I am way behind with blogging, but I am trying to catch up!

On Sunday, September 11th Dave drove the Lake Forest Firetruck for the Remembrance Day Parade in Ste Gen. It was a beautiful morning, so Dane and I headed in town as well to watch. Our friends, Clay and Amanda, pulled up next to us and Dane watched the parade with his little buddy, Colton. Colton gave him a flag to wave.

The parade was full of firetrucks, police cars, ambulances, and motorcycles.
It wasn't too long, which was perfect for Dane and I. Dane loved all of the firetrucks.

Dave driving by in one of the Lake Forest trucks.

Random Daycare Pictures

2011-09-08T06:13:00.002-05:00

Tracey often sends me pictures of Dane at daycare. I love getting the pictures during the day to see what he is doing. I love that he always seems so happy and at home with her. Here are some random pictures from the past week. They are sent from her phone to my phone, so the quality is not the best, but still so cute anyway!

Laying on his cot and ready for nap at daycare!

So sweet! Reading books with his friend Lexy.
Tracey found a frog in the backyard. She said Dane would be so serious when he would touch it, then when he pulled his hand away he would break out laughing.

Labor Day Weekend

2011-09-06T21:11:00.005-05:00

We had a fun and productive Labor Day Weekend. Friday I was so excited when Dave text me at work and told me the dresser for the baby's room had been delivered. He didn't have time to get it put together before going to work on Friday, but promised to do it Saturday morning. This motivated me to get ALL of my school work done on Friday night so I would have the rest of the weekend to work on the baby's room.

Saturday morning Dave worked hard and got the dresser put together, despite the fact that Dane wanted to sit on his lap and "help" him the entire time. I started washing baby clothes when Dave left for work Saturday afternoon.

We were so excited Sunday morning because Dave had three days off with us. When Dane woke up I told him Mama and Papa were coming to visit. We heard nonstop from the time he got up until lunch time, "Mama and Papa are coming to my house." He was so excited. About noon my mom and dad came down along with my Grandma, my sister, Kara, and niece Claire.

These two were a handful, but had an absolute ball.

They wanted to eat chips and dip with Papa.

Enjoying BBQ for lunch
Playing on the play set

Eating s'mores after Papa roasted marshmallows for them.

Throughout the day my mom, grandma, and sister, Kara, helped fold and put away all of the baby clothes. The drawers are full of clean, folded clothes ready for Baby Evelsizer!

What a relief!

Monday morning we got up and headed up to Kirkwood. We spent the day hanging out with family, bbqing, and having fun outside. The kids ran and ran all day. I am sure Dane was exhausted just from running up and down the hill.

The guys played washers.

and the kids had a blast together!

Who would have thought they could have so much fun with a sled in September?

We also got a few surprises for Baby Evelsizer.

Goodies from my mom and dad.....

and we also got our Double Sit and Stand Stroller from my mom, dad, sisters, brother, spouses, and nieces and nephews! We were so surprised and excited. This was on our list of things to buy and will definitely help when we take both boys out and about!

The baby's room is finally coming together.

I used my mom's cricket machine to cut vinyl decals out.

Dave put them up tonight for me and I really like them.

(Ignore the mess on top...still looking for baskets for the changing table)

His little nautical room is almost complete!

I am so excited and relieved that the room is coming together. This weekend I am hoping to get white letters to spell his name out above his bed and some baskets for the changing table and to put some little toys in, then I think it will just about be finished!

We had a Dr. appointment today. So excited to hear that I only gained a pound since my last appointment! The Dr. said the baby is head down right now...hoping he stays that way. I also got my flu shot, which is another thing I can check off my list. We go back the 19th and after that appointment we will go every week! Less than 7 weeks to go!

So Proud of Himself!

2011-08-31T20:30:00.002-05:00

Today when I picked Dane up from daycare he showed me a paper he painted of the letter B. He was very proud of it. He held onto it the whole way home. When we got home a friend of mine came over to plan the Halloween Party that we are in charge of (which happens to be October, 22, two days before my due date...what am I thinking???) and he was very excited to show her his painting as well.
He kept saying, "Show Daddy, show Daddy." I told him we would show Daddy tomorrow morning. After bath we sat down to watch the movie, "Up". He jumped down from the couch and grabbed his picture. He laid back down and asked me to cover him up. He continued to hold his picture and every once in a while would say, "Show Daddy."
After about 15 minutes of watching the movie (it's a good thing he has no concept of when the movie begins or ends) I told him it was time for bed. He chased Max, trying to give him a bedtime hug, which Max never wants and then went into his room, still holding the picture. He held it as I read him a story. As I put him in bed I asked if I could put his picture on his dresser so we could show Daddy in the morning. He wouldn't let it go. He laid down and I could hear him on the monitor saying, "Show Daddy, Show Daddy." He fell asleep and I just now quietly went in and got the paper.

Very Slowly.....

2011-08-22T21:43:00.002-05:00

Sometimes I wonder why I put the count down for this pregnancy on the top of the blog page. 31 weeks pregnant doesn't really bother me, but seriously, seeing 63 days left kind of stresses me out.

Even though things are going much slower than I am comfortable with as we prepare for the baby I am thankful this week that we were able to check off 2 of the 23 things I have on the list to get ready for Baby Evelsizer.

Dave got the baby's room painted and the crib put together. I know there are only two things done in the room, but I really, really like it!
Our biggest dilemma is the dresser. I have looked and looked and looked for a white dresser and can not find one (well can't find one that I like, that is not a fortune, or one that is not Antique White, instead of just white). I just want something simple. I would love to find an unfinished one or one to refinish, but right now I can't even find that. Just spend an hour online looking and once again, nothing. Once I get a dresser I can get those adorable baby clothes washed up and put in drawers ready to go!

I did get my approval and final paperwork submitted today for my leave from work. I will return to work on January 4th. Our little guy should be just about 11 weeks when I go back....as long as he comes around the time he is due.

We have a Dr appointment on Wednesday and then we start going every two weeks! I am anxious to hear what the Dr. has to say. I have done everything he has ordered for the past month! Boy will I be sending Dave out for some Dunkin Donuts as soon as I have the baby! My major craving this pregnancy and I had to give it up!

This sweet boy plays so, so hard at daycare every day and loves every minute he is with Tracey and his friends. He walks right in, holding my hand everyday and gives me kisses and hugs...but then he says, "Bye, Bye Mommy, work" and he even opens the door sometimes for me so I can leave.

He will point to my stomach and say, "Baby, in there". So, so sweet!

Maybe, just maybe, I will have more nursery pictures to show soon!

Sunday

2011-08-15T03:05:00.005-05:00

Today was a beautiful day, so we decided to head to Susson Park in the morning. Dane loves the animals there and Dave has never been there. I told Dane that we were going to see animals. He was excited! About halfway there he starting asking, "Animals, mommy, animals?" We were both happy when we got there.

We saw a huge pig right away! Dane looked at me and yelled, "Pig" and then wanted to get in the pen with the pig.

He would get so close to the fence that it would scare me a little.
This pig was quite a bit smaller and he loved it when it came over to the fence to see him.

Nose to nose

He watched Dave pet the pig.

When it laid down next to the fence he reached right in to pet it as well.

He liked to look at the horse and kept yelling, "Horse, horse", but he didn't really want to pet it.

This long horn was poking his head out and Dane kept yelling, "Pet Daddy, pet." You can see his little hand reaching for it.

We had a fun trip!

I hate that I am up at 4:00 in the morning. Sleeping is not easy these days. Tomorrow is my last day off before I go back to work on Tuesday. I planned to keep Dane home with me for the day, but I have to go to work for an hour or so to get some last minute stuff done. I also kept him home with me all last week, so I thought I should go ahead and take him to Tracey's. After all, starting Tuesday it is back to reality for us.

I am 30 weeks along now. I am hoping the next 10 (or less) weeks go smoothly and I start feeling a little better and definitely sleeping better. Going back to school means that when I pick Dane up from daycare, after working all day, it is just me and him, all night long, no matter no little sleep I have gotten the night before. I try not to think about the fact that as I am walking my class to the buses at 3:00 in the afternoon, that Dave is just starting an 8 hour shift. To make my evenings go a bit smoother, when we got back from Susson Park I spent my afternoon making 5 freezer meals. I have a couple more to make tomorrow afternoon. That gives me one night a week that I can just come home and throw the meal in the oven. I made the meals in 9X13 pans, which also means there is plenty for leftovers a night or two later!

Hopefully in the next week or so I will have some pictures from the nursery to share. I have a huge pile started for Baby Evelsizer. Some days I think..."I have 10 weeks to finish getting things ready" and other days I walk by the crib (still in the box) and the paint (still in the garage) and think, "Oh my goodness I have less than 10 weeks to get this all done." I just keep making my lists and checking off what I can get done.

Our Day

2011-08-11T16:48:00.002-05:00

I have been going round and round all week about what we were going to do today. I wanted to have a fun day with Dave and Dane, but then I would also get stressed thinking that today and next Thursday are the only full days that Dave and I have off together to get things done before the baby comes. Once I go back to work next Tuesday I will be working on Dave's days off and he will be working on my days off.

We finally decided to just have a fun day together. Even though things did not seem to go our way all day we did have a good time.

We had seen on Facebook that Eckerts was having 99 cents a pound Pick Your Own Peaches. We thought Dane would love it. We planned to get up early and head out. I did not sleep well last night, only about 3 hours, so when the alarm went off for me to get up, showered, and dressed before Dane woke up, I just could not do it. I fell back asleep and not only did I sleep until Dane woke up, but Dane woke up later than usual so we were much later than we had planned.

We headed up to Belleville Eckerts. Dane was immediately excited to see the big tractors out front. He climbed right onto one. This in itself was worth the trip. He loved the tractors.
We headed inside and looked around the Country Store. If I wasn't on my "No Refined Sugars" diet I would have bought so many little sweets from the bakery. I got the call from my Dr. last Friday, so just one week ago, I would have been in heaven. The sweet lady at the bakery gave Dane a free cookie, just because she thought he was so cute. She was so happy when he quickly said, "Thank you" before biting into it.

We headed back to the garden area where the tractor usually takes off for the Pick Your Own. It was so quiet. Dave went to ask about the Pick Your Own and we got the bad news. We were probably the 100th person that day to come for Pick Your Own Peaches, and they were not picking today. The lady said that they have had such a big response to their 99 cent sale that the trees are totally empty. I was glad Dane had no clue what we were doing there. There were several little kids with their moms in the store crying because they wanted to pick peaches. One lady said exactly what I said, "I read this on Facebook this morning." The poor lady who broke the news to us had no idea why they hadn't updated their information online or on Facebook.

We decided to take advantage of the 99 cent peaches sale anyway. Dane loves fruit. We bought a couple of bags and then headed out to find something else to do.

We wanted to be outside because it was so nice. Since we were in Belleville we weren't quite sure where to head. Dave took us to a park in Fairview Heights and we played a bit. The playground was really small and not really what Dane was used to, so he didn't play too much. We then picked up lunch and headed to another park to play for a while more. He played quite a bit there.

I was disappointed, but Dane seemed to have a great time. He must have had fun because he fell asleep as soon as we got in the car and slept all the way home.

We just finished having Peach Cobbler (sugar free) for dessert and it was delicious, so it wasn't a totally wasted day!

Tom

2011-08-11T00:45:00.002-05:00

Dane loves the phone. When any phone rings he will yell, "Phone ringing." The problem is we rarely answer our home phone. We get so many calls for some "Christina". We check the caller id and if we don't know the person we don't answer it. (I would love to disconnect it to save a little money, but 1) I think back to September 11th when I tried to call Dave from school on my cell many, many times to tell him to watch the news and my call wouldn't go through, 2) I worry about emergencies and if I would leave my cell somewhere and not have it at home, and 3) my husband won't let me). Dane will yell until the phone stops ringing.

Dane makes daily requests, sometimes hourly, for me to let him talk to people. He will tell me, "Call mommy" and bring me my phone. Many times I hear him saying, "Hello, Hello" and I will find that he has picked up the phone on Dave's nighstand. Luckily he hasn't "called" anyone on it yet.

Yesterday Dave was looking at pictures with Dane and I heard him say, "Katie, mommy." I said, "Yes, that's Katie." He then looked confused and said, "Tom?" It is funny because Dane has given Tom high fives and knucks for quite some time, but since Tom and Katie got engaged Dane has been infatuated by Tom! The first time he saw Tom after they got engaged he leaned right over and gave Tom a big kiss. It was like he knew that Tom was "officially" in the family.

Well as soon as Dane woke up from his nap yesterday he started asking, "Call Katie?" Finally right before bed we called Katie. Katie answered and Dane said, "Hello Katie, Tom, Tom?" Katie would ask him a question and he would answer her, then say, "Tom?" Katie was a little sad, but Dane did end his phone call with "I love you."

Last Few Days

2011-08-09T21:17:00.002-05:00

The last few days have been crazy busy for us. 6 days left of summer vacation! I have been working on my summer to do list, which sadly has very few things checked off so far. I have been working in my classroom. And Dave has been working his normal yucky hours.

Dane has been one wild man lately. So wild in fact that he needed to spend some time in time out for me one evening. We were, well I was, eating dinner and he finally just needed to go. I got him out of his booster seat and put him in time out. I went to clean up the table from dinner and when I turned around he was gone from the spot. I went to his room and there he was in his rocking chair with a book. When I walked in he actually had the blanket over his head. When I asked what he was doing he said, "Hiding." You can tell from his face that he was not happy. Guess he needed a break from me as well. He sat for a good 20 minutes reading books....just enough time for me to get dinner cleaned up!

For some insane reason I decided to take Dane with me to work in my classroom. I had time to go without him on Monday and Friday this week........but just my luck....Monday-they shut off the power, which meant no AC. I tried to work for about an hour and a half, but seriously felt like I would die. Then Friday they are spraying the entire building for bugs so they suggested we stay away unless we wanted to wear a gas mask while we work. Don't get me wrong, the little guy LOVED it. The whole way there he sat in his carseat saying, "Mommy, School, Mommy, Work." I asked him if he would be good while I worked and he said, "Yep".........but he wasn't. He pulled stuff off shelves and would check it out for a minute, then go find something else. He was either slamming the door or running out of it. Finally, I was exhausted, and it wasn't from working so hard in my room. I gathered him up and we headed out. When we got home I told him to play trains while I made lunch. I look up and he is gone from the living room. I found him in our bed watching TV. He turned on the TV himself, which was already on the Baby Talk channel, and grabbed Dave's hat that Dave puts on and pulls down over his eyes when he works a double so he can sleep during the day, and there he sat, just watching TV. If it wasn't lunchtime I would have left him. I bet he would have fallen asleep.....afterall he should have been worn out after our trip to school.

I just keep reminding myself that it is my last week home with him. Maybe he senses our summer is almost over and isn't happy about it either!

This Time of Year Again

2011-08-07T12:07:00.004-05:00

This little guy just loves to sit on the potty. He has been doing a really good job. We aren't going hard core yet, but he still has had several successful trips!

It is the time of year that I really dislike. It's the first few weeks in August. It's the time of year when I am getting ready to go back to school. I love my job, but I don't like this time in limbo...needing to go to school to get things set up and ready, but trying to enjoy every second of what is left of summer vacation.

I planned to go up to school last Monday and Friday and get everything finished in those two days so I would have the whole week before I go back to school off to enjoy. I ended up failing my Prenatal Glucose Tolerance test, so I had to go take a 3 hour test on Monday. I was determined to go on Friday. I went and got pretty much done, but still had quite a bit to do. I had the great idea to take Dane with me up to school this weekend and try to finish a bit more. Seriously, what was I thinking. The little guy had a ball in my room, but I got absolutely nothing done. So, despite my plans, I will head back up to school this week, Dane free, to try to finish up.

My goal was to have the baby's room done before I go back to school. Well, that may not happen. The crib got delievered. We bought the paint. We have cleared a few things out of the room. Then it all stopped. My classroom has called so my days to spend working on the room have been taken for right now. Dave planned to paint one day last week, but another, unexpected issue came up and he dealt with that instead. We are working on it, just very, very slowly! Dane does walk by the room and say, "Baby's room", so that is a plus!

So our goals for this week include finishing my classroom, figuring out the remaining furniture in the baby's room, and doing some painting! We'll see what we get done!

We are hoping that the weather cools a bit this week so we can enjoy some summer fun, without melting, before Dane goes back to daycare and I go back to work. We have until August 16th.....time is ticking away!

Dane's 2nd Birthday Party

2011-07-30T15:45:00.012-05:00

Happy 2nd Birthday to our sweet boy!

I went round and round on whether or not to have a big birthday party for Dane. In the end I decided to have a family party. This worked well for a couple of reasons...1) Once again there was an excessive heat warning the day of the party, meaning most everyone wanted to be inside and 2) My morning sickness returned the week of the party, so I wasn't feeling all that great.

I thought it was funny because we had been talking about Dane's party for several weeks with him. I know he didn't understand it all, but he would tell me he was going to be 2 and ask me to sing, "Happy" several times a day. I would ask who we were having a party for and he would say, "Dane". The day of the party the little guy just went with the flow of things and enjoyed the day, clueless that the party was for him. We had a fun day celebrating with him. I have a LOT of pictures to remember our day.

Birthday Boy ready to play with his cousins

Dane telling me that he is 2!

Birthday Cookies

Circus treat boxes

Trey and Delaney had stars on the back of their tickets so they won two giant suckers!

I remember having circus peanuts when I was little. I saw this centerpiece in a magazine and loved it. I had to look everywhere for circus peanuts though!

My little man with his birthday cake.

Waiting patiently for the candles to be lit

Excited little guy!

Blowing out candles with Daddy!

Waiting for cake and ice cream

He kept saying, "Cake, Mommy, Cake." He was so happy when I gave him a piece.

As if cake and ice cream weren't enough, he also enjoyed a birthday cookie.

Dane had a great time playing with his cousins.

Delaney is so sweet. She always entertains the little ones.

The Frosts

Dane with some of his guests!

Clown noses!

Time to open some presents! He loved all of his gifts and had a hard time deciding what to play with first!

Shooting a basket!

Taking Claire for a ride!

Dane had such a great day! After the party we went to the pool with his cousins for a while, then came back and had a light dinner. He didn't have a nap all day and almost crashed as Aunt Katie and Tom were giving him a bath. He was out like a light!

Birthday Fun Continued at the Magic House

2011-07-29T17:20:00.009-05:00

I am still a week behind blogging about all of Dane's birthday fun! Dave has been on vacation since July 20th and we have been loving every minute of it. I know Dane and I are both going to be soo sad on Sunday when he has to go back to work.

Exactly one week after Dane's birthday we get to celebrate Dave's birthday! Happy Birthday to a great husband and father! We enjoyed birthday dinner at Mama and Papa's house and then had ice cream cake. We hope you enjoyed your day!

Now back to Dane's birthday celebrations.....after a trip to the zoo in the morning and a long nap we bar-b-qued at Mama and Papa's house with the Aunt Amy, Uncle Darnel, Aunt Kara, and all the kids. We then headed up to the Magic House as Aunt Katie's guests. It was Missouri Baptist University night and she invited us all to join her.

Dane ran the whole time we were there. He followed Delaney and Trey alot and did everything they did. There are a lot of pictures here, but he did so much that I just followed him around snapping pictures.

Playing in the Childrens' Hospital Room

Loving on the baby doll

Dr. Frost

Dr. Emerson checking on the baby

Going down the slide

Sand table fun

Delaney's filling his car with gas for him.

Shopping in the grocery store...climbing the shelves to get what he wants!

Changing a tire on the car

The Restaurant

Claire working the register

Fishing with Daddy

Water table fun

Outside to the construction site

A fun night at the Magic House! Thanks Aunt Katie!

Birthday Trip to the Zoo

2011-07-25T13:11:00.000-05:00

We started Dane's birthday celebration with a trip to the St. Louis Zoo. Aunt Katie and Papa came long to help us celebrate. Mama was working at the zoo with Childrens Hospital Thursday so we made several stops by her area to visit as well.

It was supposed to be pretty hot on Thursday, so we were at the zoo by 7:45 a.m. A big bonus was that the carousel, stingrays, and the Childrens Zoo are all free before 9:00. We decided to head to the carousel first. Mama's Children's Hospital tent was right next to the carousel so we were able to see her right away.

As we walked toward the carousel we saw a couple of bears out early and then decided to go into the Penguin House. There were only 2 other people in there this early. Dane loved the penguins.

Papa held him up so he could get a good look.

He would point as they swam by.
He watched them for quite a while.

Every so often they would splash water out and he would crack up.

Daddy held him up high to look at some more penguins.

We went to the carousel and were able to jump right on.

Getting so big that Daddy doesn't need to hold on to him anymore.

Even at 8:00 in the morning it was getting too hot for this bear.

Dane kept saying, "Bear, water."

Our next stop was the Stingrays and the Sharks!

Just waiting for one to come by.

Perfect timing! We got to the Childrens' Zoo about 8:45 and could spend the rest of our time there. We saw the goats first.

Hugging onto the goats just like he does with Max.

Coming down the giant slide

Dane eagerly climbed into the hippo's mouth.

He didn't want to hang out long enough for a picture though.

And the next stop was the sprinklers. It was hot and it was his birthday, so we just took off his shoes and let him go play.

He ran all over and got soaking wet, but he had a ball.

We had to start walking around a bit to get dried off.

Petting the Guinea Pigs

At this point it was getting pretty hot. We had about a half hour before we met Mama for lunch. Mama and Papa are Grandparent Zoo Members so they have special passes. We decided to redeem passes for the train. Dane has recently discovered trains (thanks to his cousin, Trey) and absolutely LOVES them so he was thrilled to ride the train. He hung with Daddy for the beginning of the ride.

He then jumped back and sat with Papa for the rest of the ride.

He was getting hot and tired and was ready for his birthday lunch at the zoo...thanks to Mama and Papa's Grandparent Pass.

We met Mama and had lunch. After lunch we headed to the car. Dane was sound asleep before we even got on the highway.

I am hoping we can head to the zoo at least once more this year. Dane loved it and perhaps there will be more animals out when it is not quite so hot!

Happy 2nd Birthday to Dane!

2011-07-24T18:12:00.006-05:00

Dane turned two on Thursday, July 21, 2011. We have celebrated ever since! We took at trip to the zoo, the magic house, had a small party, and tomorrow will be the last celebration, his party at daycare. We had his two year pictures taken a couple of weeks ago. He had a great time and had no idea he was performing for the camera the whole time!

Not quite a celebration, but in the midst of all of the celebrating we had Dane's 2 year appointment at the Dr. He was in the 50% percentile for height and weight. He weighed 28 lbs and was 34 inches long. He has changed so much since his 18 month appointment that when we did the developmental screener I felt like I was checking Yes for everything this time! He loved exploring in the examination room and was really happy the whole time. When the Dr. left the room he said, "Bye Doctor."

Dane is only going to daycare one or two days a week this summer. I had a hard time taking him the first few days of summer, but he loves it soooo much and now that I have a lot to do to get ready for the baby and this school year it actually is really helping me out right now. He is learning so much at Tracey's and has a lot of fun with all of his little friends.

On days that Dane is not at daycare we are totally enjoying our summer. We have Mommy and Me swim lessons once a week, go to the pool to play, go out on the boat, visit cousins, and just play, play, play. We have taken quite a few "daytrips" this summer also

Dane is talking so much now. I love listening to him. Sometimes he just cracks me up with everything he tells me. Sometimes I hear him talking away to Dave and will ask Dave what he is talking about and Dave will have no idea! He loves to talk on the phone also. He will ask him to call many people during the day. I also like to hear him ask to go to his friends' houses. If we are in the car he will tell me, "Aiden's house mommy".

Dane's favorite things right now are dogs, trains, trucks, and Buzz and Woody from Toy Story. He also loves firetrucks. We just redid his bedroom in firetrucks and I can hear him talking about firetrucks as he lays in bed at night.

Dane is a very affectionate little guy. He gives mommy and daddy hugs and kisses constantly throughout the day. He will give hugs and kisses anytime he says goodbye to anyone. Tracy says he kisses her all day.

Dane is learning so much. Everyday he does or says something that amazes us. I can't count to 3 when I am telling him not to do something because when I say 1, he finishes and says 2, 3. He will ask me to give him trucks and tell me which color he wants.

We can't believe another year has gone by. We are having so much fun with our little man. We can't wait to see him and his brother play and grow up together.

Love you little buddy!

A Trip to the Lake of the Ozarks

2011-07-18T22:42:00.004-05:00

This past weekend Dane, Mama, Aunt Katie and I went to the Lake of the Ozarks to visit Aunt Tammy, Uncle John, and Baby Joe. I talked to Dane a lot about taking a trip to see Baby Joe. For days he walked around saying, "Trip, Joe, Mommy." He was so excited he even got a little confused. I would ask him what our baby's name was going to be and he would say, "Baby Joe".

We left Friday morning and Dane took a little nap in the car so when we got there he was ready to go. We met Aunt Tammy at her house and headed straight to lunch on the water. It was really, really hot, but it was worth it because the food was great and Dane had a ball.

There were a ton of fish and several ducks swimming right by the deck of the resturant and they kept Dane very busy.
After he finished his lunch he had some waffle fries left that he fed to the fish. The ducks kept getting the food and he would yell, "Duck got it" and run back for some more.

Dane spent quite a bit of time loving on Joe.

Joe is sitting up now so they played a little on the floor.

We had a fun weekend shopping and hanging out. It was so, so hot, which about did me in, but my mom and my sisters helped with Dane. He was so excited to be there that he was very, very busy all weekend.

His Backpack

2011-07-08T22:15:00.002-05:00

Aunt Amy is constantly finding toys that her kids no longer play with and she happily passes them on to Dane and her other niece and nephew. Amy recently gave Dane this backpack full of plastic picnic supplies. Dane loves it! He will bring it to me and ask me to put it on him.

Then he just walks around the house for quite a while with it on.
Sometimes he will say, "Bye, Bye Mommy" and he will blow me a kiss.

He loves to take the dishes in and out of the backpack. He is working on zipping it and unzipping it himself...the zipper is a little tight so he has some trouble with it.

The only issue with this backpack is that for some reason there are these lids in the backpack that do not fit on anything in there. Dane tries and tries and eventually, as you can see from this picture, he just starts to scream he gets so frustrated. I think I may have to hide these lids.

We are loving our summer vacation. Sadly though, it is half over. We were so, so happy Dave was on vacation for the past week. We had such a good week. Dave went back to work today and we are getting back into Mommy and Dane mode. With summer halfway through and with one of Dave's vacations down I am starting to get stressed. While we had such a good time while Dave was off, we really only did one little thing on my BIG list of things I NEED to get done before school starts. I have a list of things I want to purchase for our new little one and we have a nursery to get ready. Dave has two weeks of work, then another vacation. Hopefully in these next few weeks I can be productive with some of the things on the list that I can do myself. We have lots and lots of fun things planned during Dave's second vacation, including celebrating an adorable little guy's 2nd birthday. Hopefully we can get some things crossed off our list during that time as well. There is lots to do and I am just afraid the last half of summer will go just as fast, if not faster, than the first half.

A Trip To Grants Farm

2011-07-07T08:52:00.009-05:00

This is what a morning at Grants Farm will do to you.

After a late night Monday night we got up early Tuesday to spend the morning at Grants Farm. We got there about 9:00 and walked right up to the gates for the tram. It was pretty quiet there still.

Mommy and Dane on the tram

Dane really liked the tram ride and he looked at all of the sights along the way to the main part of Grants Farm. He sat on Mama's lap for most of the ride and kept pointing things out to her.

We were able to see quite a few animals while on the tram.

When we got off the tram Mama bought all of the kids "fun passes" which gave them all 2 bottles to feed the goats, a ride on the carousel, and a snowcone.

Our first stop was to feed the goats. Taylor, Delaney, and Trey stayed outside the fence.

Trey later went into the pen to brush the goats.

Dane said, "In", so Dave took him in to feed the goats.

It was easy at first.

But then they all wanted the bottle.

Once they seemed to be overtaking Dane Dave scooped him up.

Dane came outside the fence to finish feeding.

He loved this.

All of the kids outside the goat pen

Next stop was the carousel ride

We saw an Animal Encounters show, elephants, a giant tortoise and other animals before taking a break to eat a snowcone.

Since we were already in the courtyard we went into the stables.

We usually had to lift Dane up to see the animals, but this little window was perfect for him.

We saw camels and emus before we headed out. Dave and Dane fed these animals as well.

He would just crack up when the animals would snatch up the food.

We saw just about everything and it was starting to get hot and we were all getting hungry.

We got the tram to go back to the main gate.

The Clydesdales' Stables are in the parking lot so we made one last stop.

Dane stuck with Taylor during the walk through the stables. He saw her petting the Clydesdales.

He jumped right in and started petting them as well.

After we left Grants Farm we went to Subway to grab lunch and went to a park to eat and play. Once we left the park Dane was asleep in 10 minutes. He was still holding his postcard with a picture of horses on it that Mama got him in the General Store. When he woke up 3 hours later he started talking about the animals.

Fourth of July

2011-07-06T10:48:00.008-05:00

We had a lot of fun this 4th of July. We were so happy Dave was on vacation from work for the week! We spent time at home with neighborhood friends and then time in Kirkwood with Mama and Papa and the rest of the family.

Sunday morning Dave and Dane worked on decorating Dane's wagon for the Lake Forest Kids parade on Monday morning.

Dane was excited to have it decorated and pulled it around the yard for a few minutes.

The finished product!

Lake Forest had fireworks planned for Sunday night this year. We had plans to spend the afternoon and evening with friends. It was so hot that about 11:00 we decided to go to the pool for a little bit. We swam for about an hour and a half, then came home for lunch and a nap before getting together with friends. As Dane went to sleep it started thundering and got really dark. I thought this was the scattered shower we had a 30% chance of having. I packed for our trip to Kirkwood, Dane slept, and Dave went down to help Troy set up for the afternoon fun in the sun we were supposed to have once nap was over. About 3:30 Dave came home to get Dane and I and we were in the middle of a severe thunderstorm. We went down to the Deters where we let the kids play, watched the lake get higher and higher, and rode out the storm in the basement as all of the inflatable toys the guys got ready laid in the pouring rain. It was so crazy! We had a lot of fun despite the fact that we had to stay inside all day and the fireworks were cancelled for Sunday night.

Monday morning we got up to cloudy skies. As long as it wasn't raining at 9:30 a.m. the Kids Parade was on. We had planned to have fun on the beach and play games after the parade, but the beach was such a mess from the storm we had to cancel that part and just have the parade.

Dane was in his wagon ready for the parade.

Dane and 5 of his little friends. One girl and five boys in the group!

The Lake Forest Fire Department led the parade.

Waiting to jump in the parade line

Dane and his buddy, Lauren, from down the street.

After the parade the kids got the chance to spray the fire hose.

Dane loved it and took his turn for quite a while!

Daddy and Dane in front of the Lake Forest Fire Truck

Sitting in the truck

Spraying the bigger hose with Daddy

After the parade we went back to the house and got ready to go to Kirkwood. Dane took a nap on the way up, so he was ready to play. He was so excited to play with Trey and Delaney.

Playing golf

Ready to eat!

The little ones having dinner

Getting ready to go to Kirkwood Park for fireworks!

Aunt Katie and Dane

Walking to the fireworks with Daddy

The Frosts and Dane

Taylor took the kids to the playground for a while, then Mama, Aunt Amy, and I walked over. Dane and Claire were having a ball, but we finally got them gathered up to walk back.

Dane loved being at the park. The kids had a blanket in the middle with the adults in chairs around them. Dane would sit for a few minutes, then jump up and run. He would stop and get a drink from Papa and a snack from Aunt Amy. He just had a ball!

Playing with the glow in the dark flag from Aunt Amy.

Having a pre-fireworks snack with Aunt Katie

The lights in the park went out and he was ready to watch fireworks on Daddy's lap. He also moved to Mommy and Aunt Amy.

I was worried about how Dane would do at the fireworks. He doesn't really like loud noises. He loved them. He would point to the sky and say, "Boom, Boom."

We had a fun, fun, 4th of July!

"Daddy, Boat Ride?"

2011-06-27T21:31:00.006-05:00

This little guy loves a boat ride. He asks several times a day, "Daddy, boat ride?" If we are driving through Lake Forest and he sees a boat on the water he yells to me, "Mommy, boat, lake." He is definitely a water boy!

As soon as Dave hooked the boat to the truck and pulled it out he was ready to jump in.

We tend to go out on the water during the week and in the middle of the day. Everyone is at work and it is smooth and quiet out on the water.

Dane likes to sit with Dave and look around as Dave drives the boat. He usually looks for ducks in the water and any dogs that happen to be in back yards.

He loves to honk the horn on the boat.

When we put out the anchor he loves to turn the wheel.

I am not a lake swimmer, but Dave is and Dane loved watching him.

Dane decided he wanted to get in. His lifejacket automatically causes him to float on his back and keeps his face out of the water. Strangely enough, those are two things that Dane hates. He loves to put his face in the water and he likes to lay on his belly and kick his legs in the water.

No matter how much Dave sat him up or held him so he could practice his kicks from swim lessons, the minute Dave would take his hands off of him the lifejacket would flip him on his back to float. That is the purpose of the lifejacket that we bought, but Dane sure didn't understand that. He would just kick his little legs trying to get back over to swim on his belly.

I relaxed on the boat while the boys played. Dane finally came out for a snack.

After swimming we took one more slow lap around the lake. Dane must have been worn out from swimming. He sat on my lap and fell right asleep.

When we got back to the Marina Dave got Dane and I out and he went on a "fast" lap around the lake. He says it is good for the boat. I don't know if it really is or if he just gets a little bored with the two of us and our slow boat rides. Dane yelled, "Daddy, boat ride" quite a few times while he was gone.

We came home and Dane ate TWO peanut butter sandwiches for lunch before taking a three hour nap. Swimming and boating must make him hungry and wear him out. When he woke up the first thing he said to me was, "Daddy home? Boat ride?"

Riding A Bike

2011-06-23T16:19:00.002-05:00

A couple of weeks ago Aunt Amy said she had a tricycle that Dane could have. Our trunk was full that day, but when we went up last week Amy pulled it out of the shed. The kids washed it all up for him and we brought it home.

Dane was so excited! Dave wasn't with us, so the next morning as soon as Dane woke up he said, "Bike, Daddy". He loved it! He was also excited about wearing his helmet that Mama had given him quite a while ago.

Dave had some work to do at the Firehouse so he took Dane and his bike up there with him and let him ride for a bit. Before they left he kept walking around the house saying, "Bike, Helmet."

His little feet barely reach the pedals, so he can't pedal it yet, but he sits on it and pushes it around with his little toes on the ground. He hates to get off it!

Kids Carnival

2011-06-21T23:52:00.003-05:00

Dave and I took Dane to a Kids Carnival at a daycare near our house last weekend. I left my camera in the car at first so I missed our first activity. When we first got there we went to the Ste Genevieve County Sheriffs Department activity. They were making ID kits for all of the kids. Dane got stickers and coloring books to play with while we filled out the paperwork. They weighed him, got his height, fingerprinted him, and took pictures of him. They gave us a CD with everything on it and also gave Dave and I each an ID card for Dane which listed all of his basic information and his picture on it.

After we finished up with this we went outside to the games.

Dane played horseshoes.

He played basketball.
He went bowling.

He LOVED riding the pony. There wasn't anyone else in line and he loved it so much that the guy took him around the field several more times.

He looked at the animals in the petting zoo.

He really wanted to get in and play with them, but there were a lot of other, older kids in there at the time so the animals were getting pretty wild.

They had two bounce houses. He started off in the little one.

After the little one he wanted to move to the bigger one.

When he would bounce and fall he would crack up!

He ran and played hard for an hour.

Before we headed out we went inside to get a capri sun to drink and to cool off a bit.

Our Weekend and Susson Park

2011-06-20T22:55:00.006-05:00

This weekend was a perfect example of why I love summer vacation. It was such a relaxing weekend and we just did whatever we wanted.

Friday afternoon Dave reminded me that a big company in Ste. Gen had rented the entire Community Center in Lake Forest on Saturday. The pool and playground would be closed all day. Dave had to work Saturday, so I started thinking about what Dane and I could do. We had planned to be in Kirkwood for Father's Day, so we decided to go up on Saturday afternoon and spend the night. We went to Mama and Papa's house and Dane played and hung out with Papa. We ran a couple of errands, then had dinner at Amy's house before going out for ice cream.

Dave came up late Saturday night and Dane was so excited to see him Sunday morning. We cooked a big Father's Day breakfast and just sat around hanging out and talking all day. Amy, Darnel, and the kids came over, so Dane had a ball running around with them. We all got ready to go to T.J. and Ashley's for dinner with the rest of the family.

Dinner was delicious. We had cake to celebrate Father's Day and cake to celebrate Trey and Delaney's birthdays that were also this month. Dane played so hard at T.J.'s and Ashley's house that he fell asleep on the way home and Mama carried him straight to bed when we got back home.

Monday Mama, Amy, Delaney, Trey, Dane, and I spent the morning at Susson Park. I had a feeling Dane would love seeing all of the animals and I was right. He ran to look at one animal, ran to the next one, then sometimes would run back to see others that we had already seen.

We got to the park about 15 minutes before the petting barn opened so we took a walk around the lake.

There were several ducks in the water.

We feed the ducks in Lake Forest pretty often. Dane LOVES to see the ducks.

He seemed to be a little fast for these ducks. When he started moving, they started moving pretty fast!

He kept running, pointing, and saying, "Duck, mommy, duck."

He got pretty close to them, but they kept their distance.

This little one let Mama, Trey, and Dane walk next to him as he walked to the water.

After walking with the ducks for a while we headed over the bridge to the petting barn.

Dane loves Trey and Delaney. He must have said, "Trey, LuLu" a hundred times.

The first animals we saw were ponies, then this big horse.

Trey and Dane watched this turkey for quite a while.

Dane enjoyed watching the goats and sheep play. They would run up onto a rock and then back down. He would laugh, point, and say, "In, mommy, in". Guess he wanted to play with them.

Sticking their faces through the mural for a picture.

One of Dane's favorite areas was the stable with the cows. When we drive into Ste. Gen Dane will yell, "Cow, mooo" everytime he see the cows. He loved checking them out close up.

The kids also watched a cow being milked.

Dane sat on Trey's lap during the demonstration.

After we had seen all of the animals we walked up to the playground and found a picnic table to have lunch. The kids ate and then ran around and played on the playground for a while.

We had a great morning at the park. I can't wait to take Dave back with us sometime so he can see how much Dane loves these animals.

A Boy Who Loves to go Swimming

2011-06-06T09:47:00.002-05:00

The neighborhood pool opened last weekend. Usually it takes quite a while to get the water warm enough for me to want to go swimming. With these warm days we knew the water would be warm enough to start our daily visits.

Someone was very happy to be heading to the pool.

Dane will say, "Cheese, Mommy!", but then he does all kinds of silly stuff while I snap pictures....

Just the beginning of our fun summer vacation!

Appointments for Baby Evelsizer!

2011-06-04T22:13:00.004-05:00

Yesterday morning we left bright and early to go to St. Louis. We met Amy at Kirkwood High School, she was dropping off Trey for Football Camp, and she took Dane for the day so that Dave and I could go to our 20 Week Ultrasound and a Dr. Appointment.

Both appointments were at Missouri Baptist Hospital, but different areas so we walked quite a bit. We parked closest to where our last appointment would be and walked across the hospital to the ultrasound. Our good friend's mom works in the office and she was excited as we were.

This little one wasn't quite as cooperative as Dane was at his ultrasound. The ultrasound with Dane went pretty quick and I don't think we were in the room for 5 minutes before they told us we were having a boy. This one took a bit longer. The tech got what she could from the first view and then it seemed when she needed one side, the baby would show the other. Or she would barely be able to see what she needed and if the little one would move just a tad she would be able to get it. It took a bit longer, but eventually she was able to check off all of the boxes.

They once again reminded me that I was in the "Advanced Maternal Age" category so I had to have a specialist come in. He looked over all of the pictures the tech had taken and then took a look on his own.

We are having a healthy baby boy!

We were excited! I had told Dave for several weeks that I thought we were having another boy. I get excited thinking about Dane and his little brother growing up together.

When we walked out of the ultrasound room our friend's mom was just waiting to hear the news. She promised she wouldn't say a word and was thrilled to know that her two grandsons that live right down the street from us would have another boy in the neighborhood to play with.

As we walked to the elevator to head to our next appointment our phones were vibrating like crazy with text messages from friends and family asking for the news.

We got to my Dr.'s office and were told that he had been called to a surgery, we could either wait or go have lunch and come back. We decided we needed to eat so we met my mom at St. Louis Bread Co. for lunch. When we got back to Missouri Baptist my Dr. had only been back five minutes, so I am glad we decided to go have lunch. They called us right in. It was a real quick appointment. The Dr. went over the ultrasound results and was very happy for us. The baby is measuring right at 19 weeks, which puts my due date on October 24th.

So things are great here. The "morning sickness" which used to be with me 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, seems to be limiting itself to mornings and every so often after I eat. I also have had such a sweet tooth this pregnancy. Dave likes to cut up broccoli and cucumbers for me to have with fat free ranch dip. While I do love this, I usually have to have something sweet after I eat the healthy stuff! Another plus was that my Dr. told me that even though I tell him at every appointment that I can't believe how big I am already, the baby is right on track size wise and my weight at this point is great!!

We can't wait until our little baby boy is here!