Our precious, beautiful, gorgeous little girl.  Love her to pieces.

See ya’ later!!

It was a BEEEEE-YOUUUUUUU-TI-FUL day today!  The first day that I haven’t wanted to pass out from heat stroke every time I walked out the front door.   Thank goodness for air conditioners.  Holden asks to go outside all day long every day, as well as Kasen, but at least she understands that it’s too hot, he doesn’t.  Well, they were scrambling to find their shoes when I said that we could go outside and play.  Holden grabs his shoes and says, “Shoooooes, Owww-side” - too cute.  Normally we have them wear shoes because their feet would burn on the concrete, but today, today we didn’t need no stinkin’ shoes, it was cooler on the concrete - yahoooooo!!!!  ;) We started out with a snack, played with insects, then we moved on to playing ball.  We had some swing time, slid down the slide a LOT, played in the fort, rode on the glider, had tickle fights on the grass, each had a ride on the tricycle, we rode the plasma car (Kasen pushed Holden and I, then I pushed her), we played with the water table and then it was time for sidewalk chalk.  It was Holden’s first time with the chalk and I could not stop laughing.  I took tons of pictures and I had to share them before going to bed tonight because they’re just too cute.

Kasen and Holden started out drawing together on the concrete, but then Holden moved on to writing on the post. LOL

Holden then decided to taste the sidewalk chalk!  The face he made after he took a bite was priceless.  I was SURE he wouldn’t do it again after THAT face.

However . . . . he did . . . . he tried the red next . . . .

. . . then the pink . . . .

. . . . then the purple . . .

Kasen was mortified and tried to get all the chalk out immediately.  By the way, I had already wiped his mouth clean a few times before those last pictures were even taken. LOL

And really, there’s nothing cuter than a chalk bum!

Our day did NOT start out well, but the day ended fantastically - the kids and I both were so excited to play outside.  We headed for the backyard before 3:00 p.m., and after playtime, and the kids taking a walk with Mae Mae and Papa, they didn’t come inside until 6:30 p.m.  They were wiped out when they went to sleep.  Love that.  The cooler weather was exactly what we were needing.  I’m hoping for lots more of those days - wonderful, wonderful memories were made.

See ya’ later!!

Kasen had so much fun creating this card for her Papa - we’ll be hand delivering it later today.   Sooo, even if Papa sees these pictures before we get there, the outside of the card will definitely be a surprise.

See ya’ later!!

I have a story to tell about this picture, of course! LOL  But I’ll be back later to share.

Look at that face!  She was SO excited to have a little friend.

See ya’ later!!

Just a little bit of fun before Holden hit the hay.  He was playing earlier on the slide, actually in the buff , but he wasn’t sliding too well like that! LOL  Kasen wanted to stay outside and play, so Brad took over outside duty.  I then headed inside to give Holden a bath and get him ready for “Nigh Nigh” as he says.  Well, as I was gathering all of his stuff, he saw Brad outside and had a fit.  He was grabbing the doorknob, standing on his tip-toes, saying “Oww-side!  Owww-siide!  Owwww-siiide!”  Listening to that cute voice and watching him work so hard to get outside, I, of course, took him out for one last little playtime.  And that’s the reason he’s in his jammies.  A few slides did the trick and he was ready to head for bed.  LOVE the look on our little man’s face in these pics.  Love, love them!

The kiss-off from Kasen. LOL

Kasen helping Holden take off.

See ya’ later!!

As promised, here’s my second niece that will be graduating in 2011, another senior this year!  Doesn’t she have gorgeous eyes?!  Well, they both do - and they’re beautiful as well, and I couldn’t be prouder of them.  I have lots more to edit and I will be posting those.  However; I had to come and share this one first - I just love it.  I hope you do too Tess.

You know, I just had to share even if embarrasses Tess - she’ll understand when she’s older and has nieces of her own . . . . . I hope.  Anyway, she was always so happy to see me when she was little.  She would come running to me, with arms outstretched and yelling, “Aunt Taren. Aunt Taren.”  LOL  Never failed to warm my heart.

See ya’ later!!

Kasen just returned from a camping trip with Brad’s parents, her Mae Mae and Papa.  She’s one very lucky little girl to have such great grandparents.  They are making such wonderful memories with her, ones that will definitely last a lifetime.

Me, well, I couldn’t have been happier to see her run into my arms this afternoon.  I really missed her.  Holden and I even played in her room a lot while she was gone so we could have some pretend “Kasen time.”  Holden has started calling for her now.  In the past, he’s called her “KayKay,” “ShaySay,” and now his latest is “Kayyyyyy-Seeeeeeee.” LOL  I could tell that Holden was a little off his game while she was gone, but he hung in there.  Kasen waited patiently for Holden to wake up from his nap after she arrived home.  She discovered him first on the monitor, saying “He’s sitting up.  He’s sitting up.  Can I PLEASE go see him now?”  It’s very sweet how much she loves him, and it’s definitely a mutual admiration society . . . . . well, most of the time! LOL  He seemed pretty excited to see her enter his room and they even read a few books in his crib together and played a bit before getting on with the afternoon.  They had fun chasing each other and playing with trains, balls, and a pretend vacuum cleaner (Holden’s fave).  We only had one infraction which landed Kasen in time-out.  My favorite line ever - “You can’t be mean to me.  I’m FIVE now!” LOL  Well, being mean to her little brother was what landed her in time out.  Holden did his usual - going to her while she was on time out, pointing his finger at her and yelling “No, No, No, No, No.” LOL  Then he would squat down so he could see her eye to eye.  It actually turned out great because it made her laugh, and it happened 10 seconds before her time-out was over.  Everything ran smoothly after that, thank goodness.  Just testing her limits I’m sure - has to see where she stands . . . guess she found out.

We had a little play time in the backyard late in the afternoon, it was a little cooler then.  They really did great.  Kasen is such a good helper when Holden starts getting into things he shouldn’t.  It’s a good thing too, because he’s super fast now.  A lot of the times, she can get to him before I can and steer him in the right direction, which is wonderful.  Actually, she can be quite the Mother Hen.  I gave him a cheese cracker this afternoon and she promptly took it from him, telling me, “That cracker has cheese in it.  Do you know that cheese has milk in it?  Holden CANNOT have milk.” LOL  She’s right about the milk, but he’s doing quite well with the crackers . . . . as long as he doesn’t have too many.  Funny girl, she is one smart cookie.  Okay, back to playing in the backyard. They both had some swing time, they played in the fort, and Holden ran around touching stuff and saying “Hot! Hot!”  LOL  He’s not a fan of the hot.  We were outside the other day and he touched one of our patio tables and yes, it was super hot.  He pulled his hand back so fast, put it on his chest, and looked at me with the most serious (and shocked) face and said, “Hot. Hot. Hot. Hot.”

Here’s Kasen playing on the swing, obviously upside down.  Look at that sweet face.  Oh, how I’ve missed it.  The cuddles all afternoon and the numerous times she said, “I love you” and “I missed you soooo much” just warmed my heart.  I was holding her quite a bit today, and when I had to get up, she said, “Nooooo, I wasn’t done loving on you yet.”  Awwwww, another Mommy melting moment.  What a sweetheart. <3

See ya’ later!!

This is what Holden says every single time he sees me on the phone, all while he furiously reaches for the phone . . . . and cries.   He loves to say “Hi,” “Bye,” and “No!” LOL  And he loves to press the buttons.  It’s almost become a huge hassle because he does not want me talking on the phone now at all, HE wants to talk.  We do have a phone that has been plugged in, but the telephone line has not been connected . . . . . . which is great.  That means it makes sounds when he pushes the buttons, he can make it ring, but at least he’s not calling China.

Check out the tears in this photo.  I finally gave him the phone so he could talk to my Mom, after a HUGE meltdown.  He quieted down the minute he had the phone in his hands.  Stinker!

Having a deep conversation with his Mimi.

Holden cracks me up with this smug grin.  You can just hear him saying “Yep, I got what I wanted.”  Silly boy!

See ya’ later!!

Crazy!!  I’m just amazed that my twin nieces are seniors this year.  I still think of them as three year old flower girls at my wedding - oh yeah, they were THE cutest flower girls EVER!!  :) And now they are beautiful young women.  How did THAT happen??!! Anyway, I’ve been working on their senior pics, but I wanted to show just one for now.  I’m showing Molly first because she’s older . . . well, by a few minutes anyway. LOL  Here she is. Just gorgeous!

See ya’ later!!

Holden’s cutting his molars right now, so he’s been quite fussy lately.  Now, we also have a five year old cutting her adult molars.  I thought it sounded funny when she said that she had half a tooth and when I went to investigate, it was like looking in Holden’s mouth.  I could see half of her tooth poking through her gums.  Whew, crazy around here!!  Teething strips for everyone. LOL

I haven’t taken as many pictures of Holden lately because he is ALWAYS on the move.  He hardly ever sits still now, and continues to climb on the kitchen table.  I’ve been putting the chairs on top of the table and the kitchen island so I don’t have to remove him 100 times a day.  He is still getting in to everything he’s not supposed to.  The thing that cracks me up the most lately is him dancing when I turn the vacuum cleaner on, he likes to groove. LOL  Smacking the the juke box with his hand is code for “turn that thing on” - as soon as he hears a tune, he’ll start busting a move.  He was getting Kasen to turn on musical toys today so he could dance.  I’ve never heard of a child starting to dance when he hears a drill saw, but Holden sure does.  Funny, funny boy.  He’s talking a LOT - I think he has about 20+ words now.  He asks to go “owww-side” every single day.  When he touches something he’s not supposed to, he says, “Hot” even when it’s just wet.  Falling is so frequent around here that I just look for blood immediately.  I always pick him up and say, “Oh honey.”  Soooo, now when he’s upset or he gets hurt, he comes running to me and cries, “Honeeeeeeyyyyy.  Honeeeyyyy.”  So sad, but precious.  First thing in the morning, he asks for his “Bobble” (bottle) and he asks for his “Buh-eeeeee” (bunny) every single night - actually, he’s asking for it a LOT during the day now.  He used to leave it in the crib in the morning, but now he reaches back for it and won’t leave the crib without it.  That poor bunny, it’s looking BAD.  It was washed again today.  I can’t wash it more than about every three days or it would fall apart.  I did ask my friend where she bought it for him, and I’ve already got one on order.  I’m just hoping he’ll take to it so we can retire the poor bunny that once had white paws to his memory box.

Here’s our little man - both sides, happy and serious.  Can you tell how much he’s slimmed down with all that walking?!  I knew he had, but looking at the serious picture, I can really see it.  Little man is growing up . . . way too fast!!

It looks so funny to see that big molar in his mouth just surrounded by gums.  Love those pearly whites he has~

See ya’ later!!