Blessings and Raindrops

As usual, this weekend was busy and I didn’t have a spare moment to hop on the computer. So, I’m just now finally getting around to sharing some action shots from the boy’s birthday party! You can check out Part One of the party shots here.

Now, we had planned to keep the party really low key. Just gather our friends and family and head over to our barn for a fun afternoon. Enjoy yummy BBQ and let the kiddos run around and play in the dirt.

Seriously, that was the plan. Let the kids play in the dirt.

I started to worry about a week and a half before the party that the whole “just let ’em play in the dirt” plan was not incredibly well thought out. Maybe we should have another option for the girls??

And, the dirt is truly just dirt. Not clean sand or anything. The parents of kiddos covered in mud and gunk may be less than thrilled with this party plan of mine.

I decided pony rides would be fun. And, unbeknownst to me, The Builder had put on his party planning hat and called in reinforcements. He had a friend who said he’d bring over some of his pet animals {from an honest to goodness real farm not a pretend one like we have} for the kiddos to pet and play with.

We ended up with a little petting zoo, ponies, some of Dave’s “toys” and a sand pit for digging {I convinced Dave that sand was a better option than dirt and he hauled some in}.

Needless to say, the boys were in awe. They didn’t know what to do first. Play with the animals – kittens! goats! bunnies! – or ride the tractors- or dig in the dirt – or ride a pony. It was just too much. Truly. But, I consider it a complete success because the moment their freshly shampooed {they gave a new definition to the word “dirty”} little heads hit the pillow, they were fast asleep.

Sleep = success in our house.

Enjoy some photos from their fun-filled day…

Our little petting zoo:

Ben is never allowed to have lollipops because of the artificial dyes, but I found these organic ones online and he was as happy as he could possibly be. I think he ate four and hid some in his pockets for later.

The rooster and the chickens literally sat on this cage like this the whole day. I couldn’t get over it. I can’t say I’ve ever really spent much time with roosters and chickens but I never really thought they would be so laid back.

Love this facial expression… awe.

Digging in the sand {Nate takes this VERY seriously}:

Ben came out to do a little supervising…

Pony rides were a hit:

Check out Dave in the background in the photo on the left … not sure what he’s doing but it makes me laugh…

Surprisingly, Nathan was a little freaked out by the horse.

 My boys love tractors and construction equipment:

Hayrides with Aunt Katie at the wheel:

The crowd watching the hayride…

And, time for cake!

It was such a fun day and I am so grateful for every precious memory made!

To My Precious Ben and Nathan,

I just hugged you tight before laying you down in your beds (you’re still in your cribs…I plan to keep you in those for as long as possible!), and could hardly hold back my tears as I kissed your cheeks and breathed in your perfection. I cannot believe you are turning two tomorrow. TWO. YEARS. OLD. My babies are officially toddlers.

The past two years have been the most blessed of my life. You both amaze your dad and I each and every day. We watch in awe as you soak in the world around you. You are learning and changing so much each day. I hardly even realize how much you’ve changed until I look back on old pictures or watch old videos. You seem so grown up now! You are both talking all the time and you’re both so polite (most of the time) and sweet and innocent. You are full of love and make me see the world differently. I love experiencing the world through your eyes!

One Month – this picture always makes me laugh!

One Year

Two Years

Ben – you are my sweet, kind-hearted soul.

You love animals – stuffed or real. You sleep with about six stuffed animals every night and Mr. Bear is still your favorite.

You love your paci and your blankie. You have to hold onto the tag of your blanket when you lay down to go to sleep. We find the tag and hand it to you that way.

You’re very sensitive and you are also very inquisitive. You like to know how things work. You study everything. You are cautious and take your time before trying something new.

You have the sweetest voice in the world. When you say, “Please” and “Thank you, Daddy” or “Thank you, Mommy” … my heart literally melts. You could get absolutely anything you want when you look at me with those big, bright blue eyes and say, “Please.” It is just the sweetest sound my ears have ever heard. You have been putting words together and making little sentences lately. Yesterday, you told us that your cup was “not working.” And, you love to say, “Cheers!” and tap cups with us during dinner. It’s a funny thing your daddy taught you.

You also love to race or be chased. Nana Marrs taught you to put your hands on your legs and bend down while I say, “Ready, Set, Go!” before you race off. You laugh so hard while you run. You have always had the most infectious laugh.

Your smile is contagious and you could charm the moon, my sweet boy.

You love to dance. You also love an audience. You always are so sweet and tell everyone, “Bye Bye” or “Night Night” and give hugs and kisses before leaving someone’s house or heading to bed.

You love to sing in the car.

You are independent and like to play by yourself sometimes. You could “cook” in your kitchen or on your new BBQ set for hours.

You are the light of my life.

One Month

One Year

Two Years Old!

Nate – you are my funny, cuddly, dare-devil.

You make everyone laugh. You are the life of any party and light up any room you enter.

You climb on everything and have no fear of anything. You always have bumps, bruises and scrapes. {Today, you climbed Aunt Katie’s pile of bricks and fell off and scraped your arm up and dropped a brick on your toe. It was bleeding and is bruised.}

You love making truck noises and are really good at it. You make tractor noises, beeping noises for big trucks backing up, fire truck sirens, airplanes, dump trucks and garbage trucks. You love construction trucks and get so excited when you see one.

You love your baby {your glow seahorse} and take it with you everywhere.  You have two and prefer to have them both in your arms at all times. Especially when you sleep.

You like two of everything. If I hand you a cracker, you will say, “I need two.” You’re that way with anything…”Two” and “Baby” are your favorite words.

You also love to say, “Dada” “Mama” “Papa” “Nana” and “Chi Chi”.  You probably say those words twenty times a day. You also say, “No!” in response to Ben saying, “Mine!” {which he does a lot}.

You are so sweet with your brother. When he cries or gets hurt, you bring him his blankie and even give him your beloved baby for comfort.

You love to give hugs. You especially love hugging your friend Hannah, your brother and Max {our pup}. They are all not very appreciative of your hugs but you still give them! And, you hug all of your family when you are saying goodbye. You are very loving.

You love to snuggle in the morning. You and I snuggle up on the couch and watch “Jake and the Neverland Pirates” or “Mickey Mouse Clubhouse” together every morning. I treasure our snuggle times. Sometimes you will fall asleep on me when you wake up too early…those are some of my favorite moments. Listening to you breathing and praising God for the abundance of love in my life.

You are the light of my life.

One Month

One Year

Two Years Old! {Barnyard Party}

Ben & Nate – I love you with all of my heart and am so honored to be your momma. You will always be my precious babies. I wouldn’t trade a single moment of the journey to get to this place. I am grateful and blessed!!

I love you! Happy Birthday boys!!!!

XOXOXO,
Mama 🙂