Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Summer is over - I think :)

Last weekend we went to the cottage to help Mom and Dad take the boats out. 
It was a beautiful weekend and we got to enjoy the summer weather for a few more days.


Saturday morning was a little chilly but still sunny so we put on our badger gear and headed out to play! This was Isaac's first time in the baby carrier facing forward - he was a big fan! 
 

First baby selfie :) 
Look at those cheeks! 
 

Meanwhile Patrick and Dad were working hard getting the raft into shore and then cleaning the boat lift cover. I went down to check their progress and had to snap a photo. 
 

Jimmy and Grammy blowing bubbles - sometimes they tried to blow at the same time! 
 

And my favorite photo of the weekend - Patrick and Dad both skied one more time - 80 degrees and sunny at the end of September?!? Awesome! 

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Jimmy James is two!

We had a great time celebrating James' birthday this past weekend!


James loves trains (choo choos) especially Percy (perjay) Thomas (tubby) and James (gee). 
He also loves airplanes (aabees) and can spot one in the air from a mile away.
Happy Birthday James! 

Saturday we had his birthday celebration during the Badger game. 
Check out the fun! 


The boys were looking at the cake and quickly noticed all of the snacks in front of them. 
 

Buppa with Ben and Isaac.  
 

Grammy and Grandma with the babies. 
Plus I love this photo cause you can see the awesome baby onesie that Isaac is wearing! 
Thanks again Josh :) 
 

Amy and Claire enjoying their bloody Mary's. 
Claire's was of course a virgin - but it reminded me of my childhood - I loved the bloody Mary mix too and always wanted the veggies out of my Dad's drink. 


Kid table! 
I found these mini folding chairs at a rummage sale last week - worked perfect for these guys! 
 

James blowing out his birthday candle. 
He did great blowing out the candle and will repeatedly tell you it is "Jimmy's birthday" and that he is now "two!" 
 

Enjoying some Percy cake --- Jojo waiting patiently for his slice! 
 

Elise and Claire in their matching pink Bucky shirts. 
 

James enjoying his cake while Patrick patiently cut out exact pieces of cake for each of the kids --- rockstar uncle of you ask me --- when he managed to cut the eye piece out of the middle of the cake - I burst out laughing! Awesome! 


Gift opening was the most stressful part of the day - James was overdue for a nap and all of the other kids instantly crowded in and around James and I to either watch VERY closely or "help" open the presents. 
Fun but fast! 


Post gift opening --- happy to have a little space! 
 

First photo of Lisa and I and the boys! 
 

Snuggle Pudge! 
Isaac enjoyed being passed around all day.  I think there were 4 different times where he was fully asleep in someone's arms and yet when they tried to put him down, he would be instantly awake and ready to play! 


Post nap wrestling in the yard. 
 

Grandpa Ted and Isaac. 
 

Helping themselves to round two of the cake! 
 

Cousin love...
Love this photo :) 
 
After everyone left the 4 of us settled in and relaxed for the rest of the weekend.


James and Patrick looking at the grasshoppers outside. 


Isaac was happy for some nakey time on his play mat. 
 

And Jimmy and I read lots of new stories

Thanks to everyone that helped make Jimmy's day so special! 
We had a wonderful time and are so grateful for wonderful family and friends! 




Monday, September 22, 2014

James loves Percy!

Patrick and I tackled a train cake this year for James' birthday.  
Jimmy loves trains - especially Thomas, James and Percy from Thomas the Train. Originally we were going to go with James since the names works and he is red (favorite color and Badgers!)  but Percy (or as James calls him - "Perjay") is truly his favorite. 

 

 With a big family I didn't feel a cake mold would be big enough to feed the crowd so we went with a sheet cake and created our own.  


Patrick sketched it out with a toothpick and a head lap! 
 

Then I filled in the frosting. 

 

In the beginning he looked more like the Monopoly Man - 
but I think he came around to Percy in the end! 
 

Good teamwork :) 






Sunday, September 21, 2014

Little boys have lots of fun

Lisa and the boys decided to come to Wisconsin for an impromptu visit this weekend - so we went to Milwaukee on Friday so the big boys could play together and we we could each meet the new babies!


Ben and Isaac on Grammy's play quilt. 
6 weeks makes a big difference in size right now :) 
They are going to be buds - holding hands already! 
 

Because of the size difference, I thought it would be funny to have Isaac "hold" Ben... 
Isaac took the opportunity to try to eat him! 
 

Little Bro === Big Cousin! 


James checking out the two car seats at the park. 
 

Jimmy James in the Pirate ship. 

 

Cousin teeter toter. 


 James took a break from playing to watch the mini skid steer working at the library. 


Jojo giving Lisa some love before crossing the bridge! 
 

And the favorite slide of the day --- the conveyor belt slide! 
James thought this slide was AWESOME! 
 

He and Thomas went down head first repeatedly and Jimmy's chubby cheeks jiggled each time! 


Cousin pile up! 
 

3 boys on the tire swing.  TJ and Jojo wanted to spin - but I could tell James was getting a little dizzy. When they got down, he stumbled and nearly crashed into the pole! 


And the first of many 5 boys photos! 




Thursday, September 18, 2014

Patrick's Marathon

Patrick took on training for a marathon this summer and did his best to train with the small amounts of downtime he had after Isaac was born.  The marathon was last Sunday and he did awesome!


I made a plan for the boys and I to see Patrick as much as possible but really had no idea what to expect. We had two stroller options, the baby bjorn (Isaac) and the backpack leash (James). I figured depending on who was awake, who was happy, and how close we could park to the route - we had enough options to get us through.  Oh yeah, I also had a large coffee and enough snacks to feed a preschool! 
 

The marathon was a new addition to a pre-exisiting 1/2 marathon race from previous years, so there weren't a ton of participants this year. In most cases we were able to park on the route and see Patrick up close and personal while Isaac stayed in the car. 
 

James and I made a sign  the day before and he was pumped to hold it and wave it for Patrick. 
Here he is at mile 6 cheering on Daddy! 
He did really well and enjoyed cheering on the runners. 
We ended up seeing Patrick 8 times and even managed to stop at a park to play and feed Isaac! 


Patrick finishing strong - with Derek, Everett, Dusty, Scout and Harper in the background. 
 

Patrick finished with a new PR for him - 3:20! 
As I mentioned before, it was a smaller race - Patrick was one of the leaders in the marathon and yet there was no one at the finish - it was bizarre! 


Post race conversation and congratulations! 
 


Way to go Daddy!