Memorial Day 2014

Bryce and Mason weren't exactly sure about tubing. We never went faster than idle speed :)

We kicked off the summer in style with a super-fun Memorial Day weekend. We started off the weekend with the very first Friday night at the Branches pool for the summer season. Friday nights at our neighborhood pool are a weekly social event, with food trucks and lots of socializing to celebrate the weekend. It was fun and Mason jumped right in the water. Matthew took some time to warm up to it, but he loved the baby pool. Mason is still using the 'puddle jumper' swimmies, but he does great and we'll probably do private swim lessons later this summer. I'm kind of dreading it because I don't have to worry as much about him as long as he's wearing his swimmies (and we do have lifeguards at our pool).

Then we went to the lake for the rest of the weekend with the Packer's. Mason had a blast with his BFF Bryce at the lake. We took the kids in the boat, did a little tubing and spent every afternoon in the pool at the condo. We had perfect weather and it was an awesome weekend! No one wanted to go back to work or school on Tuesday. Oh well. At least summer is here!

Matthew really likes the boat this year

Sweet Tessa wasn't as sure, but she did good!

 

Silly boy after tubing!

Birthday Party at the Railway Museum

This year we decided to throw the boys a joint birthday party. Their birthdays are within a month of each other and right now, they 'share' a lot of the same group of friends (and most of Matthew's friends are siblings of Mason's friends). We decided on a train themed party at the Southeastern Railway Museum. We had never been there before and I highly recommend it for a low-key party. The younger kids loved being able to climb and play on the old trains and the 'big kids' (adults) really enjoyed the historical aspect. It wasn't crowded at all, so we basically had the whole place to ourselves. Mason isn't technically 4 until June 7th, but he keeps telling everyone that he is FOUR now. I guess it's hard for a 3-4 year old to separate the party from their actual birthday.

Getting everything setup in our rail car for the party!

Mason with his buddy Raj

Matthew and Daddy on the train

Mason with Mimi

My (almost) 4 year old!

My 2 year old baby!

Everyone riding the train

Conductor Dee - he enjoyed the trains more than anyone :)

A letter to my two year old

I can't believe my baby turned two years old last week! I am amazed at how much you have grown and matured in the past year. You've always had a strong personality and we see more of your independence every day. You have the kindest heart and always greet the people you love with a HUGE running bear hug. This has gotten you the nickname 'Teddy Bear' by the teachers at school. Anytime someone around you is upset, you try to make them feel better by taking them their favorite toy or giving them a hug. You're cautious to strangers, but are also very social, so it doesn't take long before you are fast friends with new people. You still idolize your big brother and want to do anything the 'big boys' do, but you are also content to play by yourself. Especially in your crib in the mornings when you play and sing until we come to get you up for the day. Speaking of singing, you LOVE to sing! You also love to read and will sit and 'read' by yourself. We can't understand much of it until you get to 'THE END - YAYYY!!!' (I've got to get this on video - it's adorable). I love your snuggles and your belly laugh just melts my heart. I fell in love with your dimples from the moment I met you and I still sometimes tickle you just to catch a glimpse of them. You are very stubborn and the 'terrible twos' have been a challenge, but you're finally learning after a quite a few 'time outs'. You are one tough cookie (I guess you have to be with a big brother). You're always falling down or running into stuff (or getting hit by Mason) and usually just bounce right back up. You are very smart and understand just about everything we say. Your speech is also getting better and we recognize more and more words every day. I knew there would never be a dull moment with two boys, but I can't imagine it any other way and you truly complete our family. We love you sweet boy!

A few two year stats:

• Weight and height TBD (Dr. appt next week). Though he is wearing the same sizes as Mason (3T) and a larger size shoe.
• He's a GREAT sleeper!! He goes to bed easy (if we follow the routine) and hasn't woken overnight in months. He always wakes up so happy in the morning and will sing and play in his crib for an hour until we get him.
• He also a great napper - 2-3 hours every day.
• A pretty good eater, but kind of picky. He LOVES fruit! He can eat 4-5 bananas a day if I let him.
  

  

  Just 2 years ago - time flies!

Lemonade Days and Boat Season

With the weather finally warming up, it is entering that oh-so-fun and oh-so-busy time of the year! Mason is playing soccer on Saturday mornings (last game is tomorrow) and it feels like every weekend is planned almost to the hour. My boys love to stay on the go, so I'm not complaining! Last weekend, we went to the Dunwoody Lemonade Days. This was our first time and I was expecting a few rides with some carnival food trucks. We were surprised that it is a full-fledged fair with all kinds of rides, games, food and fun for the whole family! Mason is our little daredevil and rode every single ride that he was tall enough for (and even one he had to stand on his tip-toes to pass :). Matthew wasn't quite as sure, but wanted to ride everything that big brother did, so there were only a few that he sat out. It was a very fun community event and we ran into lots of friends while we were there. Then Sunday we drove to the lake to get the boat in the water for the first time this season. It was a beautiful day and we took the boys on a little ride around the lake. Mason even went swimming at the lake pool, but it was FREEZING!

Matthew isn't so sure about the bumper cars

They loved the rides!

 

Of course he picked the orange car

 

Riding with friends is fun!

And at dinner after Lemonade Days. He did this to himself (showing off for Tessa?)

First boat ride of the season!

Cancun!

 

View from our room!

Chris and I had an amazing trip to Cancun! We stayed at Secrets Silversands (all inclusive) and it was wonderful! The food was delicious, the drinks were plentiful and the resort was gorgeous. We tagged along with some friends as they celebrated their 5 year anniversary. It was so much fun to travel with other couples! There was lots of relaxing, sunning, eating, drinking and just doing nothing! Everyone was ready to plan a trip back for next year, but I don't know if Mimi is ready for us to make it an annual thing. The boys had a blast at the farm, but 6 days away from them was a bit much. Mommy really missed them and was ready to get home!

Chris and I in our taxi from the airport. Yay Mexico!

All the pretty ladies

Mike & Nikki

Me and my love before dinner

Jenn & Derek on their 5 year anniversary!

The whole crew playing cards in the pool

View from our favorite spot at the beachside bar

The largest of the resident iguanas (there were about 7)

Weekend getaways

All three of them looking at the camera!

It has been a long winter and everyone is ready for spring to get here! We finally got some nice weather the past few weeks, but of course that also means the pollen is here. Chris and I are super excited that we are taking a parents' only trip to CANCUN in a few short weeks!! It will be our first real trip away from the boys (for more than 1 or 2 nights). We've very excited for some time to rest and unwind! And many thanks to Mimi and Dee who agreed to keep the boys! I don't think they realize what they've gotten themselves into :) Stay tuned for pictures! We're gearing up for the spring/summer birthday party season and also can't wait for the pool to open. We've met so many great new friends in our neighborhood and I know it's going to be a fun summer!

Last month, I took the boys to the farm to celebrate BreAnna's birthday. They had a blast as usual! I'm so glad that they enjoy playing with their cousin and we can't wait for our new baby cousin to get here (we just hope she waits a few more weeks). Here are some fun pictures from the trip. We were also lucky to have Mimi and Dee visit us at our house one weekend AND we met them at the lake another weekend! What can I say, with all of this nasty weather, sometimes it's easier to get away to somewhere different!

Popsickles with Mimi

Mason was not impressed with Uncle Lamar's fish

Sweet BreAnna on her 7th birthday!

Check out the baby bump!

Night night

Mason and Dee in a very competitive fishing game

More spring pictures here: https://picasaweb.google.com/chenretty/Spring2014#

Snow day 2!

Living in Georgia, you remember winters by 'the year it snowed'. It is VERY rare that you can ever say 'the winter it snowed TWICE!'. It has been a very cold, harsh winter. We have now had almost 2 full weeks spent at home due to 'inclement weather'. Unlike the last storm that kind of took everyone by surprise, this one was talked about for days. Weathermen (and women) used the terms 'epic' and 'catastrophic'. Luckily it wasn't as bad as was predicted and everyone took the proper precautions this time around. Schools closed a day ahead of the storm and everyone planned to be stuck at home for a while. It started out as an ice storm with a fairly thick later coating everything. We were glad that we didn't lose any trees or power and then we finally got a few inches of snow to play in. This time around, the snow was very thick and wet and melted quickly, but we were able to play on Thursday morning and build a few snowmen in the backyard. I think we've all had enough of the snow and are ready for spring to get here!

Building our 'big' snowman

Shadow's not so sure about this

Checking out the finished products

Putting the finishing touches on Mason's snowman

I couldn't get the boys to pose with daddy, but Shadow was glad to do it

Mason built this one all by  himself

Matthew wasn't so sure about this snowman thing