Cadillac EscaPade

It's so funny what kids remember and I think three year olds remember EVERYTHING or at least this one does. A few weeks back Aunt Emily posted on facebook a picture of a Cadillac escalade that she and Uncle Keith had bought at a yard sale for Avery. I showed Hayden a picture of this and told him this was Avery's new Cadillac. Fast forward a few weeks later when we went to visit for the weekend. We get to Emily and Keith's and they are not home but give us the garage code and tell us to let the kids play with the toys in the garage and that Hayden can drive the Escalade. Jeff opens the garage and we said nothing to Hayden about any of this and he sees the car and yells excitedly, "oh its the Cadillac... can I drive it!?" How he remembered the make of the car is beyond me. Maybe its an innate guy thing when it comes to cars. He hops right in and Landon soon becomes his passenger and takes over music duty. This car comes fully equipped with a functional FM radio. Landon couldn't be happier since music appears to be his thing. Every time we get into our car he is signing music (or at least his sign for music) and bops his head and bounces around in his car seat to the sound of the tunes. He doesn't want childrens music and is very particular about the song selection. He enjoys Lady Antebellum's Run to You and I Need You Know but does not like the Dixie Chicks at all and is very vocal about his preferences. He also likes rain down by delirious and a variety of other artists.

Splash Park

Each year we keep renewing our zoo membership and each year we go more and more. This spring and summer started off very soggy and then came the heat so we've only been to the zoo three times so far but the boys have gone with Dede twice so we definitely get our use out of our membership. Since it's been so hot we've gone to the splash park which Hayden loves (after he gets used to the cold water) and Landon remains unsure of. We even went with some new friends Crystal and her two kids, James and Katie, who are the same ages as Hayden and Landon. Grammy has accompanied us on all our trips and this makes for an easier time for me having an extra set of hands and someone to talk too and help push the stroller up the big hill!

Our Little Golfer(s)

In the last six months Hayden has really started expressing interest in doing things daddy does. The newest thing is golfing, before that it was cutting the grass, working with tools, watching sporting events etc. Lately it is golfing. I got Hayden his first set of clubs with bag at a yard sale for $10 and thought this was a great deal so that we can see if this is an interest that last more than a few weeks. I thought these clubs would be perfect but once I got them home I realized they are more for a 7-10 year old. Never the less he didn't know any different and was so excited to have clubs and a bag just like daddy. They filled it with balls, a golf glove and tees. Now he needed a golf course to play on with his over sized clubs. First we decided a trip to the driving range would be better suited than an actual round of golf. Hayden at first was very responsive to daddy teaching him how to hold the club and hit the ball but quickly decided he wanted to do it on his own. Landon had his plastic clubs too and got in a few swings. I even got to take a few swings and Hayden's clubs fit me well as I was actually able to get the ball off the ground which was a first. A few weeks later while visiting Uncle Keith and Aunt Emily, the boys went for a round of golf and Hayden went as well. He didn't have his "clubs" so uncle Keith had some old clubs that he cut down for Hayden and wrapped the end in duct tape and presto Hayden had a club that fit just right. Much better than the ones I bought. Hayden was so happy and filled with pride that he was big enough to go along for a real golf outing. When they came back he was so excited to tell me about golf cart riding and how he got to hit the ball during the middle of the course since the manager was not around.Looks like we are going to have to get him some actual clubs that are his size.

Snow Cones and Slides

I wasn't kidding about June being a busy month. Although this wasn't a birthday party it was still a party none-the-less. During Mas and Kellie's visit we also made it over the the Woods for a fun filled afternoon of water slides, roller coaster riding, snow cones and hot dogs. I think I had as much fun as the kids and I know Jeff and Travis did too since they donned swim trunks and headed out to the inflatable slip n slide slidding down just as the seven and nine year olds did. Although I think Jeff got carried away and not only flipped off the back of the slide landing on the motor resulting in bruises and swelling to his back and arm but he also crushed a poor little five year old. He really had no idea how fast he would go on the slide and she asked him to go with her so he did and it resulted in his knee into her abdomen. Thankfully there were no major injuries. The kids had fun playing in the water and riding on the little tykes roller coaster down the ramp and down the hill in the backyard. Hot dogs for dinner outside followed by snow cones, red for Hayden and white (plain) for Landon. Landon had more fun throwing the ice of the deck onto the unsuspecting below than he did eating it. This really was a perfect summer day and the older ones made their way to run through the golf course sprinklers as dusk drew near. Made me want to be seven just for a minute.

Fun on the Farm

During Mason and Kellie's visit we went to Grandma Hamilton's on one of my days off. It's sweet watching Hayden and Landon interact with their older cousins. Hayden really looks up to Connor and after not seeing him for a year I wasn't sure how he would act but he picked right back up where he left off and I noticed he payed more attention to Carson as well but Carson really took an interest in Landon making sure to play with him and that the others were sharing with him. Kellie said that Carson tends to look out for the youngest and that is indeed what he did during their visit. We all had a great time at Grandma's and I think she had a nice time too visiting with everyone but having her house filled with 4 great grandkids that were full of energy wore her out so much so that she fell asleep in her recliner despite the shrieks of Uncle Mason playing with Carson, Hayden and Landon. This week was the first real interaction Landon had with his Aunt, Uncle and cousins since he was just a newborn the last time they were in town and he enjoyed it as well.

Happy Birthday Daddy and Carson

What a great start to June! Mason, Kellie and the boys, Connor and Carson, come in for a week long visit. This time last year we thought we would be going out to see them this spring or fall and instead they got to come back to see all of us! Hoping that next year we make it out to the southwest to visit them. The week started off by celebrating Carson's 7th birthday ( I can NOT believe how old he is getting) and Jeff's birthday (Once you get to 21 who's countin' anymore). Hayden was so excited to see his cousins that he hadn't seen in a year. Boy had they both grown and gotten taller. Really made Hayden look so small and when I only see him around Landon and similar aged cousins I forget how young he still is. We had a yummy birthday dinner followed by some kickball in the backyard then presents and dessert. It was so nice being able to spend a day with everyone home in mom and dad's house. If only we could do it more often.

Birthdays, Birthdays and More Birthdays

So June is once again the month of many birthdays. I love summer birthdays! We started out by celebrating Audrey's 3rd birthday at Aunt Donna and Uncle Rob's with a pool party. Hayden had a blast with his cousins. He loves the pool and can't get enough tossing around. Hayden has always been like a fish to water but Landon is still undecided. He likes water, loves bath time, but seems to prefer water of a warmer temperature than that of a newly filled pool. He had fun splashing in the baby pool and actually did like the big pool but only if daddy was tossing him around and bouncing him in and out of the water.

Another fun feature at the birthday was the tree house swing set that Uncle Rob custom built for Audrey. This is not just any tree house but truly a top notch cabin with kitchen, flat screen TV (pretend) and a remote that the little ones love to play with. (I think the TV could use another remote since it seems to be more popular than the swing and slide combined.) Hayden, Addison and Audrey had fun playing together and baby Mason snoozed away on this hot summer day.