Thursday and Friday - Home Days!

We are so glad to have a few extra days off this week to hang together!  Thursday was a Home Day!  We dropped off Lincoln's official registration packet at Bowie, and he loved being there.  I think he misunderstood the registration process because he was sad to leave . . . he thought he could just start Kindergarten right then!  We shopped a bit then hit up Big Lou's Car Wash, and they loved that!  Seriously, the car was is one of their favorite activities. 

Daddy took us to Goodfriends for dinner, and it was delicious.  We spent the first day of spring on a sweet patio with perfect weather and yummy burgers!  Friday morning was gymnastics, and that is always a winner.  After lunch and a little rest, we met up with about 15 incoming Bowie Kindergarteners at the park in our neighborhood.  It was great for me to meet the Moms, and we really hit it off!  I wouldn't say that Lincoln really got to know any of the other kids very well at the play date, but he and Beau had a blast!!!  The kiddos kind of paired off with who they knew from pre-school or with siblings, but we have more events planned to get them more acquainted.  It was a wonderful afternoon to be outside, and everyone had so much fun! 

Not much is better than an afternoon at the park, and it was good for all of us to "sniff this fresh warm air" according to Beau!  After this crazy winter, sniffing fresh warm air is super!  We have some Arkansas visitors in town to celebrate the joint birthday party for Lincoln and Beau on Saturday, so many pictures and lots of fun are in store!

 

Bubbles

Warm weather on Tuesday evening made us want to get ready for spring:  grilled burgers, sweet potato fries, and then lots of bubbles!!!  We had several bubble instruments going, and the bubble solution was fruit scented!   

Beau put down his own bubble blower to chase the crazy bubbles that Linc was making.  So many bubbles! 

Beau got back to his instrument, and Lincoln took a turn to chase the bubbles.  This is the most fun ever!! 

The above pictures were taken on my real camera, but I decided to take a couple with my phone before we went in.  This one of Lincoln is priceless . . . kind of blurry, but showing the reality of chasing bubbles!   

The weather is warming up, and we will spend lots of time this spring blowing and chasing bubbles.  It's really one of life's most simple pleasures, right?  The magic that a little special solution creates a bubble that can expand and float in the wind, and that catching one to pop is a reward for the chaser.  We will go through lots of bubble blowers in the next few months for sure - the manufacturers don't make them with high quality parts - but it is money well spent to watch two little boys experience such joy!

A Day in the Life . . . Sunday!

Let's do a "Day in the Life" for this Sunday!  Lincoln and Beau were hand in hand on the way to Sunday School this morning, and the wind was blowing their (too long) hair like crazy.  It was so sweet to see them loving to hold hands.  The lesson today was about Zacchaeus, and everyone loved the story.  Beau got to crash the 4 year old class because Mommy was teaching.  We taught the other kids the song, "Zacchaeus was a wee little man," and everyone loved it!

We needed omelets (Mommy and Daddy) and waffles (Lincoln and Beau) from Cindi's after church, and it was delicious.  The boys played so well together in the afternoon.  They really liked listening to the stories from their new Disney reader.  It is always cute when they enjoy the same activity and actually get along! 

Lincoln and Beau love the daffodils they see along our running trail, and they always admire how sunny and yellow they are.  Nana brought them their own batch of sunny and yellow daffodils, and it made their day!!!  Actually, it made Mommy's day too! 

After an afternoon movie rest (Daddy and Beau watched a movie on the couch in the office, and Mommy and Linc watched Clifford on the iPad in the living room), they created a spectacular castle!  Lincoln was so proud to pose with the castle, and Beau was being a bit of a feisty 3 year old and refused to cooperate!  He was happy to show me the superhero figures that were well guarded deep inside the castle.  They actually built in several layers of protection for their figures, and they kept telling me it was super awesome!  Agreed! 

We had a wonderful Sunday dinner of baked salmon and roasted potatoes/peppers/onions.  The boys actually liked the wild Coho salmon, and that was a great dinner for all.  While we were cooking, we heard Lincoln yelling from the playroom that he was making it rain money . . . so it's not like we listen to rap music these days, but we are pretty sure that is there is a rap video reference about "making it rain" with lots of dollar bills floating down.  They definitely made it rain with their play dollars, and the didn't even know they were participating in a pop culture moment!  Wouldn't it be nice if we could actually make it rain money?!?! 

We made whoopee pies for dessert out of a sprinkle cake mix, chocolate icing, and spring colored sprinkles.  Lincoln ate his whoopee pie in just a few minutes, but Beau really took his time and savored his treat for over 30 minutes!!!  He always said he was still working on it when asked it he was ready to be done.  So glad they enjoyed their dessert! 

This Sunday was super fun for all!  To recap:  church, brunch, playing, rest, playing, dinner, playing, dessert, playing, and finally clean-up and bedtime.  They definitely liked clean up the playroom part the least, and we might need new money to make it rain (Daddy got a little carried away with throwing away stuff!), but it was a great day indeed.  Monday, here we come!

Beau is 3!

Beau is 3 years old!!!  We began the celebration on Friday morning with a stop at the Donut Shop for a delicious breakfast.  Beau picked a blue sprinkle donut, two donut holes, and a "hot dog" for his special treat.  (Lincoln chose a chocolate sprinkle donut and donut holes.)  It seemed like a lot compared to a usual breakfast (like a cereal bar and banana), but they had eaten every single bite by the time we got to school.  Fun way to start the day!

After school we gathered in Daddy's office to open a few presents for the birthday boy.  Lincoln had been very insistent that he needed to shop for a present without Beau being there, so Nana, Pops, and Aunt Carolyn came to hang with Beau while we shopped on Thursday evening.  He also helped with the wrapping and name tags.  Of course, the gift from Lincoln was opened first, and Beau loved his Captain America guy.  He also opened gifts from Mom and Dad, Patsy, and Auntie, and he got some really great stuff.  He modeled his new Spiderman sunglasses right away and looked too cool! 

I think every single thing was Superhero related: glasses, clothes, bubble stuff, action figures, and much more.  Beau was "cheesing" with his Captain America! 

We celebrated in the evening at Anamia's, and it was delicious as usual.  Everyone (Nana, Pops, Carolyn, sang Happy Birthday to Beau before we enjoyed our cupcakes.  Beau really savors each bite and takes cupcake eating very seriously.  Linc was happy with his choice of chocolate as well.  Baby Jackson (do we need to stop calling him Baby?) had fun at our little dinner party, and he looked cute in his hat.  Beau was insistent that he would not wear a party hat, but most of us were happy to.  He got to take a few gifts home from Nana, Pops and Carolyn that they had lots of fun with. We played with the Robisons until bedtime, and it was a great evening. 

What all can be said about Beau Thomas Kuhlman as he turns 3?  He is completely amazing in every way, of course!  He is very sweet and gives the squishiest hugs.  He absolutely adores his big brother and keeps up with everything Lincoln comes up with.  They have so much fun playing together, and Beau's wild imagination is mostly thanks to Lincoln.  He loves to make a stand/store of any kind . . . he can cook the best pretend burgers and fries (but he charges $50!), he can make the best pretend pizza at his station, and his pretend snow cones come in many flavors.  He is super smart and loves to learn new things.  It's sometimes unbelievable that his vocabulary is so large, and people everywhere are shocked when they learn his age.  He is even able to think of a word that begins with any given letter.  We play this game a lot to support Lincoln's classroom lessons, and Beau has really learned to take the letter's sound and come up with a word that begins with that same sound.  Beau can be the silliest little guy, and he knows when to turn it on.  I love his silly voices and crazy made-up knock knock jokes.  He is VERY into Superhero stuff right now, as his birthday gifts showed.  He also loves to watch movies in his rest time (on the weekends), and his favorites are Despicable Me and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.  This is the only time of the day that he is still!  Since day 1, Beau has been a great eater, and that hasn't changed.  He's always up for a snack (like 5 times a day!), and it seems that crackers with slices of cheddar, Oreos, and pretzels are his top snacks these days.  He and his Daddy love to hit up the candy dish, and any season Reese's cup is the winner!  (We currently have Reese's eggs.)  Beau's favorite dinners are spaghetti, grilled pork chops, chicken and cheese quesadillas, grilled chicken, and little hamburger sliders, and he loves to pick a different fruit to go along with dinner each night.  He always eats his veggies without a fight:  steamed broccoli, green beans, or carrots!   Beau has really become a great swimmer lately, and he's quite the gymnast too.  He moved up to the 3 year old room at school last week, and he loves it!  Those new 2 year olds in his old room were just too young for him to play with.  He has been reunited with his bestie (that moved up earlier this year) and that's been exciting!  He already loves his teachers (Lincoln's old one from that class) and playing with kids that are more on his level.  Beau can definitely be feisty, and he is very sure of his opinions.  Daddy says they share the same personality, and that seems pretty correct.  He doesn't get bullied or pushed aside, and his confidence is through the roof.  Sometimes that makes it hard for him to be told what to do because he has his own ideas!  Overall, he is still the sweetest, smartest, sassiest, super-est guy I know!  Happy Birthday to the best Beau ever!

Shadows

Shadows are a funny thing!  Lincoln and Beau were extremely entertained by their shadows this afternoon.  This is priceless stuff!

We went for a stroller run after school, and they noticed their shadows about halfway through.  We talked about shadows for at least two miles, and they were so intrigued that the shadow was always there.  "Our shadow is going exactly the same way as we are," exclaimed Lincoln.  "Yeah, our shadow does the same thing we do," agreed Beau in astonishment.  They did lots of waving and kicking to confirm that their shadows were indeed doing the same thing, and it was too funny!  To Marian and Larry:  Yes, Lincoln is reading his Highlights magazine while on the stroller run.  They both received their magazines in the mail this afternoon and insisted on taking them.  Beau finished his first at about mile 1 (right before he discovered his shadow) and stashed it in the basket, but Lincoln took way longer to investigate the "what's silly in this picture" page.  It is really true that no moment with these guys is boring, and a simple stroller run is a fun event for all.  We love our little exercise buddies!

Great Weather = Lots of Outside Time

Monday was a wonderful Home Day!  It's always nice to skip work and school, and we made the most of our day.  We had waffles and a little Mickey for breakfast then went for a 3 mile stroller run in the morning.  The boys picked super special flowers for Mommy while they walked up the street.  Beau was so proud of his giant yellow flower, and Lincoln discovered the first of the lovely purple flowers of the season and was so excited.  These flowers are sitting in a glass dish of water on the window sill, and they are cherished! 

We went to Central Market after lunch to check out the cakes and cupcakes for two special birthdays this month, and a sweet treat was in order.  Beau had stayed quietly in his room for the past few mornings, so he got a reward . . . and Lincoln got one too just because!  They chose a gelato from the cool stand up front and were so excited to select chocolate!  Because Mommy had just done a 3 mile run, she had one too!  We debated sitting on the curb to eat our gelato, but they told me they could just eat it on the way home.  Dumb Mommy Moment . . . their clothes and car seat straps were completely soaked with chocolate gelato in the 10 minutes it took to get home.  Clorox wipes to the rescue for the car seats, so no real damage.  A fast load of laundry saved the clothes, and we all enjoyed our yummy treat.  But maybe next time we'll just sit on the curb with a lot of napkins! 

Tuesday was back to school, and the boys were happy to get back to their teachers and friends.  We arrived at the same time as Beau's best girl Violet, and they did some flirting early this morning.  Lincoln's teacher hugged him like she hadn't seen him in ages, but it's only been since Thursday!  They are loved!  The weather was so nice that we put our pork tenderloin in the oven as soon as we got home and headed out front to play.  Beau was looking super tall and kind of slim.  He's really stretching out!  He sorted through the rock collection for at least an hour and organized the rocks by shape, size, and color.  We have a really large rock collection! 

We came inside to take the pork out of the oven and steam the broccoli, and then we decided to take our dinner outside for a picnic.  What a fun idea!!!!  Everyone cleaned their plates of herb marinated pork tenderloin, broccoli, pineapple slices, and a wheat roll.  It was even more delicious than usual because we were outside.   

The playing didn't stop after dinner because we used up every moment of sunlight to play.  We drew funny pumpkin faces in chalk, raced the scooter down the sidewalk, and the boys played a super awkward game of catch.  It was the best evening ever!

Fun Weekend

Fridays are the best days because we get to skip school!  We had so much fun running wild at gymnastics, and Lincoln did his best to recreate the Olympic rings (after watching so much Winter Olympics last month) with hula hoops.  Also, he challenged Mommy to a hula hoop contest . . . he did ok but just doesn't have the hips or hip action to keep up yet.  By the way, hula hooping is quite an abdominal workout!  We had fun at gymnastics and headed to The Dog Stop for lunch.  "Delicious and nutritious,"  according to Beau!

We spent a few hours playing outside in the wonderful weather, and the boys did lots of digging for worms.  I asked Beau what a worm looked like, but he responded something about a pink silly thing . . . I'm not sure he understands what he's digging for, but he's up for Lincoln's crazy worm idea!  Of course, we went to dinner with our favorite Friday night group and had lots of fun.  There wasn't much planned for Saturday because it was going to be a rainy and cold day.  We made it a Game Day!  Daddy and Beau played the fishing game first.   

Mommy and Lincoln started with Chutes and Ladders.  Lincoln won 3 times!  It's not even like one can cheat at Chutes and Ladders, right?  It's all up to the spin, and Mommy kept sliding down the chutes!  Lincoln loved it! 

We ended up playing almost every game on the shelf - Memory, Lucky Ducks, Dr. Seuss Matching, Berenstain Bears Learn to Share (important lesson there!), and so many more.  It stayed cold and rainy into the evening, but we had the yummiest dinner at our favorite neighborhood Italian place with Nana and Pops.  The dreaded Spring Forward arrived, and we all managed to survive with one less hour of sleep.  We headed to Sunday School a little groggy but pepped up and had a great day.  St. Patrick's Day treats were our little project after lunch, and we made pretzel/chocolate/M&Ms shamrocks.  I kept calling them four leaf clovers, and Lincoln couldn't stand it.  "There are only three clovers, Mom!"  They were delicious, and we ate at least 5 apiece!   

The boys were so proud to help make them and then pose with the finished product.  Two cute kitchen helpers are the best! 

After a rest, we went for a run in the stroller.  After three miles of being bossed around about which way to turn and how fast to run, it was a relief to let the boys out to run down the block to our house.  This is definitely their favorite part about a stroller run.  Pushing a stroller that weighs about 100 pounds (two kiddos plus the stroller) for three miles is not exactly easy, so it's a breeze to go the last block.  They love to skip and run and giggle on the way home. 

Daddy grilled the yummiest beef fajitas on the new grill, and we all loved our dinner.  Apparently, Beau managed to sneak into the pantry for some Oreo cookies.  His chocolate face gave away his secret, but his sweet smile and baby blue eyes made up for his indiscretion.  (Crazy hair alert!) 

So we have definitely had a fun weekend!  Lots of fun, lots of laughs, lots of yummy meals and snacks, and lots of love.  Bring it on, Monday!!!  (Well, only because we are at home and not starting back to school or work for one more day.)

Thursday . . . A Regular Day

After all of the excitement on Wednesday, we had a pretty normal Thursday.  The boys went to school, and the parents went to work.  Not too much excitement to report there!  Since Daddy cooked our delicious dinner last night, it was Mommy's turn.  Grilled herb crusted chicken, whole wheat macaroni and cheese, and steamed broccoli was on the menu.  Everyone cleaned their plates, and that make a Mommy proud! 

It is time to shop for spring clothes, and Nana asked what the boys needed.  Linc needs the basics, but Beau probably has plenty of hand me downs.  That means the storage bin has to be checked, and that is always a daunting task.  I allotted a few hours to go through all of the clothes in the bin to determine what items were summer 3T sizes.  What a great surprise (and reminder) that I spent an entire weekend (in November) organizing the clothes into bags by size and season so it would be easy to know exactly what we had.  Seriously, I was crazy happy that it was so easy to grab the bag labeled "3T summer", and that was it!!!!!!  So proud of my previous organizational skills!  Also, the Rangers are playing pre-season baseball games now, and I LOVE watching Rangers baseball each evening.  What a surprisingly awesome night! 

After the boys had fun snacks (popsicles and ice cream sandwiches), it was time for baths and bedtime.  Beau went to bed as usual, but Lincoln asked to stay up a little more because it was a "weekend night".  True, because they don't go to school on Fridays.  We spent our after hours time working on reading skills with Biscuit books.  After 30 minutes of reading lessons, Lincoln requested a Taste of Home cookbook for us to look at . . . we had so much fun picking out fun recipes to try!  Love this special time with Lincoln! 

It has been a very busy week, and we are ready for a home day and the weekend.  We have plenty to do, but nothing serious on the schedule. 

Kindergarten Round-Up

Wednesday morning was Kindergarten Round-Up day, and we were the most excited family ever!  We got to Bowie at 8:15 to get registered, and these two cuties kept us entertained in line.  Linc was all smiles, and Beau was all sillies. 

We all met the principal in the cafeteria before the incoming Kindergarten students went on their school tour and activity time in the real classrooms.  Lincoln was happy to line up with the other kids and didn't even hesitate . . . so glad that he wasn't feeling scared or apprehensive!  The parents (and little siblings) sat through a long but informative program from the principal, librarian, counselor, nurse, and PTA president before we could begin our school tour.  Beau played a few games on my iPhone, then I discovered that he took approximately 100 pictures of our feet while we were listening and taking notes.   

We picked up Lincoln after about an hour, and he had so much fun in big school.  He said on the way out, "This is way better than my regular school!"  We got a sweet smile in the cafeteria before we left.  The students each made a book about what goes on in Kindergarten, and Lincoln is already cherishing this book in a serious way! 

Since the boys had so much fun at Bowie, the drop off at regular school was a little bit of a let down.  They both recovered nicely and had a fun day, of course!  Daddy made us a delicious dinner of pork chops (on the new grill-they were perfection!), steamed green beans, and a potato.  I mean, look at those grill marks-the best!!  The boys shared a pork chop and loved it, and they chose sweet potato fries instead of a baked potato.  Yummy dinner for all! 

After a little play time, Lincoln and Beau asked for chocolate banana milkshakes for dessert.  That sounded like the perfect treat after such a great day!  Lincoln posed with his milkshake nicely then slurped it down quickly. 

Beau sucked all of his milkshake with his straw while I was grabbing my camera to take Linc's picture, but he was trying to get the last drop by the time I turned the camera to him.  This is just how Beau does things like milkshakes! 

I have to point out that this was the first time the boys wore Komen shirts, and I loved it!  They both recognized that the logo on the shirts were like shirts that Mommy wears, and I've been saving these until they got big enough.  Komen supporters at the earliest age!  We are all so excited about Lincoln starting Kindergarten in the fall, and we know he will completely love it!!  We have play dates lined up with other incoming Kindergartners, and we are enrolled on a T-Ball team of other Bowie kids in the spring.  Linc will know tons of kids (and we'll know tons or parents) by the time school starts in August.  This is the beginning of a wonderful school adventure for Lincoln, and he couldn't be more ready! 

Our Weekend

Hooray for Saturday!  It was a lovely day to play outside, and we loved the 80 degree weather.  Lincoln and Beau sure love playing in the backyard!

Lincoln had a school friend's birthday party in the afternoon, and he played himself into a super sweat!  Look at that crazy hair and red face!  When his teachers showed up to celebrate with the class, they were like rock stars.   

Beau and Daddy took a trip to Home Depot while we were at the birthday party, and they picked up an awesome new grill!  Our grill died a couple of months ago, and we have really missed grilling.  In the colder months, we grill a couple of nights each week.  In the warmer months, we grill twice that much.  We are already planning what to grill this week! 

After the birthday party fun and Home Depot shopping fun, we had a delicious dinner with Nana and Pops at the new Mena's.  So 3/4ths of us are smiling, but I'm kind of ok with the fact that Beau doesn't always feel the "cheese" when we tell him to!  Love our little family! 

After such a wonderfully warm Saturday, we had to wake up to the weirdest weather change.  I know people always say around here, "If you don't like the weather, just wait 5 minutes."  (Imagine that in a southern accent.)  Well, from 80 degrees on Saturday to 20 degrees on Sunday is just too much!  This crazy guy entertained me while we waited on a table at Deli News for brunch!   

Back in the house where all is warm, and Beau showed his sweet smile and amazing blue eyes! He can be the sweetest Beau ever, and photo evidence should document that! 

Lincoln and I constructed a really serious piece of Lego art, and he was so proud to show it off.  Beau had been off doing his own thing for a few moments, so we got to make a big kid Lego craft.  So timely after watching the Lego Movie! 

The boys took a little iPad break before dinner, and they had a little brother togetherness! 

Well, the weather forecast wasn't wrong.  Unfortunately, the sleet stayed around for most of the day, and the temps were sub-freezing.  So there was no going outside on the cold Sunday! 

Hopefully this is really the last official cold day until spring.  We do love the intermittent warm days, but we are ready to be done with ice and below freezing temperatures.