Under Construction

We've been remodeling our front bathroom for the past few weeks, and it's an amazing process. My step-dad has been here almost every day working so hard on it. We are so blessed that he is willing to do the work for us, and do such a nice job. Walls came down, floors were torn up, cabinets were removed, and then it was all put back together. Now it is almost finished except for a few finishing touches and some tile work on the backsplash, and it looks amazing! I don't have any pictures of the finished product yet, though. It's a bit addictive, however, and we are now thinking about what else in the house needs a bit of work.

The boys have also really enjoyed the process. Mostly, they love seeing Papa Dan everyday and helping him with his fun tools. Landon, especially, has had so much fun helping and learning.

Tearing out the walls.

Learning how to use tools.

This was one day when everything was completely torn up. It all went uphill from here.

The boys watching Papa work.

I'm so excited to have a really nice bathroom. Now, if we can just get him to do the master bathroom too . . .

firefighters

Landon has been so creative lately in his play. I love watching his imagination come alive. He takes many of my household items and turns them into what he wants them to be. I mentioned the other day how he uses my salad spinner as headgear. Shortly after that, he pulled out my air popper for popcorn and one of my belts and asked me to strap his "fire extinguisher" to his back. Of course, the cord

made a perfect hose for spraying. So, he was running around for hours with a salad spinner on his head and a popcorn popper on his back playing fire fighter. He even got his friend in on the whole thing:

Some days I wonder why we keep any toys in the house at all.

Then again, his toy fire trucks have gotten a lot of action lately. This kid is all about responding to emergencies. If Coleson cries, Landon comes running, usually yelling about emergencies and how the ambulance is on the way. Coleson has started running along behind him pushing his favorite truck, too. They are too cute together! I can't wait to see the games they will play when Coleson is just a bit older.

February

I am glad it is February. The month of Valentine's Day and my birthday. There are fun things being planned for this month and I am so looking forward to them.

I have some great pictures to share tomorrow (ok, maybe in a few days, we all know how I am) of Landon and his newest game involving kitchen gadgets. He cracks me up everyday, that one. Also, frustrates me to no end but that is a whole other topic.

Speaking of Landon, I just heard a huge thud but no crying. I went into his room, found him laying on the floor still asleep, put him back in bed and left. It's the second time he has completely slept through falling out of bed. How does one do that?

To bed with me, I just had to share a bit of randomness.

weekend adventures

We are off to the water park today! We went last year for Tyson's birthday and had so much fun we decided to make it an annual winter event. What's more fun than swimming suits and water slides in the middle of winter? Plus, the price is really reasonable. I think we will stop in Coeur d'Alene for a while to hit a few stores there and then head to the water park for some bowling, mini golf, arcade play, and of course some water slides. Happy weekending!

imagination

Today I spent about two hours listening to and watching Landon play while Coleson napped. I love to watch his imagination come out in his play. He uses different voices for the various characters, comes up with dialogue, and often quotes movies, TV shows, and me with amazing accuracy. When he is so deeply engrossed in his play I try not to disturb him. Which is largely why my morning errands did not get run and he got to stay in his pajamas until almost noon. I just love what he comes up with and chooses to do with his toys. And my household items, for that matter. Today his favorite props were the pieces of my salad spinner, which served mostly as a race car driver helmet, but also as a fireman's air mask and a bike helmet. We even took it with us when we did finally go run errands and visit with friends. I feel like watching him play this deeply gives me a bit of insight into the way his brain works and the things he finds important. And, it makes me realize that I really need to be super-aware of what I say around him.

Happy Birthday, Coleson!

A year ago today we welcomed our sweet Coleson into the world, and he has blessed us every day since then. He is such a happy little person and so full of joy. Over the last year he has grown so much, and learned so many new things. It's amazing to look at the transformation.

(Coleson, about 10 hours old.)

(Coleson at his birthday party.)

He has gone from a sweet, sleeping baby to a walking, almost-talking toddler. He loves his older brother and gives him a hug every morning as soon as he sees him. He smiles at EVERYONE and people comment all the time on what a happy boy he is. He is mellow and loving and we are so thankful he came to be part of our family.

We didn't do anything really special today, just loved on him a bit more than usual and gave him a cookie after dinner while we sang "Happy Birthday." But over the weekend we threw a birthday party for our families to attend, and we have another small, casual party planned with some friends tomorrow. At his party on Saturday, Coleson was way more into working the crowd and smiling at everyone than opening gifts, but he did have fun playing with some of the wrapping.

He actually slept through a little more than half the party (that's what we get for scheduling it during nap time) but he woke up in a great mood, ready to play.

Here's to another great year to come. Happy 1st Birthday, Coleson!

New Year

So glad to have the holidays behind us. We are settling back in to a routine and I am thankful. In the new year I want to exercise more and keep from getting overwhelmed with keeping house. Nothing big.