Happy Mother's Day To Me!

I am sitting downstairs updating this blog in relative peace & quiet as Brian is upstairs busy with the boys. I'm savoring the last bit of Mother's Day listening to all three of my guys laugh their way through bedtime routine. Well, no sooner than I finished the sentence and someone is crying. There is very little peace in a house with a toddler and a preschooler. I know everyone who has lived through these years says they go so quickly. I can already tell that the time does seem to go by fast. It's hard to believe Tyler is already 4 and "little" Drew seems so anxious to be independent. They both seem so eager to grow up and do bigger and better things. There is a constant battle in my head between letting them be adventurous boys and keeping them safely close to me. The day-in, day-out chaos of raising two little boys seems overwhelming, but Mother's Day gives me a chance to step back and put our crazy days in perspective. I know that someday soon I will miss this stage of explaining why shooting Spiderman webs at our Sunday School classmates isn't appropriate. And I will someday soon miss chasing Drew for the fifth time as he escapes the library via automatic doors. So, for now, I will try to cherish these days as much as possible and ask God to help guide me to be the best mom I can be for these deserving little guys.

Tyler Turns 4!

We opted for a few small birthday celebrations instead of a big party this year for Tyler. On the day before his birthday, we went to Adventureland on Opening Day to reward him for potty training success this past fall. Drew stayed with friends and the three of us had a fun (yet chilly) day.


We went to Happy Joe's with the Kinnison family on his actual birthday. Tyler liked his Lightning McQueen cake and playing games in the arcade. Drew's favorite game was Skeeball.


Tyler had a second celebration (& cake) on May 1st with Grandma & Grandpa Carlson. We were celebrating Grandpa Alan's 60th birthday, too. Tyler got his long-awaited Mack truck from the Disney Cars movie and was thrilled. You can tell how much Tyler likes a toy by how much he keeps it away from Drew. Let's just say Drew hasn't been allowed in the same room as Mack.

We made a little treasure hunt for Tyler to find one of his birthday presents. A series of picture clues led him up & down & all around until he finally ended up opening the basement closet to find a shiny red bicycle. He has had fun riding it up and down the block and is convinced that it goes much faster than his old bike.


Tyler is looking forward to his final 4 year old birthday celebration with Grandma & Grandpa Emanuel over Memorial Day weekend.

Almost Tulip Time!

We thought we were going to Pella's Tulip Time, but we were a bit early. One week early to be exact. Oops! We got a great parking spot right in the center of town and didn't have to battle any crowds so our mistake really was a blessing. The tulips were beautiful. I was trying to recreate the moment when we took some great pictures of Tyler walking NEAR the tulips at his first Tulip Time. Drew had other plans. He preferred to try to walk THROUGH the tulips which is generally frowned upon by the locals. We did get a few good pictures of Drew, though. Here is a side-by-side of the two of them. Tyler is on the left (2006) & Drew on the right (2009).








































Fun Tyler Quote as he was buying a Dutch Letter with Grandma Linda: "I want an S." Good choice, Tyler!