New Car

We finally got a vehicle that can hold more than just the 4 of us! Nate & I are going to pick it up tonight in Kansas City. It's a 2005 Toyota Sequoia. It seats 7 which means I can haul my kids & my nephews! We have several road trips planned for this year so we definitely needed something bigger- with a dvd player! Lately, Jackson has been telling us that he wants to sing his abc's. Preschool has gotten him into singing but he's very picky about when he sings, who hears him and you can never sing with him. Well, just now he was in his bed- not wanting to take a nap but staying in there anyway- and I hear him singing them "a, b, c, d... q,r,s, w, oh wait, that's not right...a, b, c, d...". It was quite hilarious listening outside his door. Well, its happening. A few months ago I didn't think it was going to happen... but it is. Daddy & Addy have something going on. The Daddy's girl thing has begun. I'm not sure what they have but they are tight. I'm not sure who is more smitten' with who. The other night Nate & I were butting heads with one another over each child. He used to be tough on her but now she nearly gets away with anything when daddy is around. She also has her hold on Papa- and I heard that she is working into Uncle Phil's heart too. I have to admit that she is quite sweet WHEN she chooses. And she can be very select in her choosing. She is her own little girl, with her own little ideas and her own BIG wants. I could still kiss her little face off nearly everyday. ugh... she's good.

Easter!

The kids spent Good Friday morning at Nana's house painting eggs and an egg hunt. They had a blast- as these pictures show. She got them all sunglasses that they l-o-v-e. On Sunday we drove to the Brodersens place and had an Easter egg hunt with all the cousins. It was freezing cold but the kids didn't notice. Then Uncle Gary got out his new HUGE green tractor and gave everyone (even adults) rides. Jackson was lucky enough to go twice because Mommy wanted to go! Jackson is doing a lot better. We ended our steroids and breathing treatments yesterday. He still has trouble running for a while and will start coughing and having some breathing difficulty. But once he calms down he's ready to race around again. Addison is talking up a storm. The only problem is its not in our language and she gets very frustrated at us. We keep getting teased by warm weather but it keeps going back to cold. We can't wait!

Sick boy

We've had an eventful few days. Jackson stayed home from pre school on Thursday- sick. When I got home he had just gone down for a nap but I decided to go in and see him anyway. Joan had told me that he was wheezing so I wanted to see/hear for myself. I went in and he was breathing so quickly and shallow. Something in me told me that I wanted to see him more- so I had him get up and come into the living room. I watched him for a few minutes and knew I needed to take him to the doctor. He was having an asthma attack! We came home with a breathing treatment and steriods. Dr. W said that we will not call it asthma yet because many kids have a one time attack but if it happens a few more times before summer then we'll have to talk more seriously about asthma. I don't like to admit this (and didn't of course to dr. w!) but Jackson was still sleeping with a binky. I couldn't let him do it with his breathing the way it was. Nate & I had been procrastinating getting rid of it anyway so this was the perfect time. It has been a rough few days but he has officially slept 4x without it! We had a party last night and he got to invite friends & family. I picked up balloons and got him a race rig (semi truck) w/ race car. So, we are a binky-free family and it feels great! The kids all went to Nana's house yesterday morning for painting easter eggs and an egg hunt. They all had a blast and came home very painted- and energized! Tomorrow we head to our Aunt, Uncles and cousins house for lunch and an egg hunt. The kids will have such a fantastic time.

Zoo day!

We had our first Zoo day of the season! Heather heard that it was going to be 70+ degrees out on Wednesday (and only Wed.) so we took advantage. We didn't tell the kids until they woke up that morning. Smart because as soon as Jackson found out he could barely wait the hour to get ready! It was the perfect day (75 degrees and sunny). All the amimals were out- either sleeping or playing -able to be seen at least. The Hippo's put on quite the show and were the boys favorite. Addison liked the giraffe's and penguins. She growled at everything even though Ashton told her the giraffe's didn't growl! I must admit something... Addison has become a sweet, sweet, loving little girl. She does have her tough moments but over the past 2 weeks she has been so sweet. Almost snuggly at times! She is also warming her daddy's heart and VERY quickly becoming a daddy's girl. I can see him melt when she runs up to him as he comes home from work or when he chooses him over mommy. errrr. She is very smart. :) Jackson is enjoying preschool very much these days. He tells me about the boys that don't like him- but I have quickly figured out that he is ultra sensitive and it doesn't mean that they are being mean to him but might mean that they don't run up and hug him- or tell him they are friends. I'm afraid he might be bullied in school- except that won't happen with Ashton (or his sister) by his side! Tonight I was telling Nathan to go let Jake (dog) inside/clean his paws because it was cold outside. We were joking around with each other and Jackson thought we were being mean. So, he tells me quite frankly "mommy, you are being mean to daddy" and then rambles on (while still playing with his toys) "well, sometimes we have to be cold...". It was more of his drawn out conclusion of our conversation that was so hilarious. He has Nathan's dry sense of humor and it is really starting to show (show off!). We're looking forward to starting swim lessons April 1st. This will get us ready for summer and the beach club! I know Addison will be a fish just like her brother. One of the biggest reasons I want to get her some survival skills before summer begins! She isn't afraid of anything. We're also looking forward to a big trip to Austin, Texas. Nathan & Phil have meetings so Heather, me and the kids are going to spend five days with our cousins (that also have 3 kids close in age to ours) that live there. We'll also hit Sea World while we're there!

Super star

Here is our superstar... along with many other names we call her- monster, turkey, crazy, wild child and on occasion we call her sweetie. We have quickly learned that she is not or never will be as easy as Jackson. However, we love her the same. She wants to do things when she wants and how she wants. period. We are ready for spring. We got a taste of it on Sunday when the temperature reached 74 degrees. We spent the day outside playing. And then came Monday when the high was 36 degrees. I barely understood- and Addison REALLY didn't understand why she couldn't go outside. Jackson asks daily if it is warm enough to go to the zoo. The other day Jackson & Addison were standing together and Nathan & I over heard Addison laughing and Jackson kept saying "its NOT funny" and then Addison would laugh harder and Jackson would say more defiantly "its N-O-T funny" and Addison would just crack up even more. I have no idea what it was about- I think that was it. Jackson is growing smarter by the day- and constantly amazes us with something else he knows. He's super great with numbers and is growing daily in his knowledge with the alphabet. He got done with preschool today and said, "mommy, I love preschool". Most the time he won't tell us what he did in pre-k. He'll just say, "I'll tell you on Saturday...". Looking forward to some warm days to play outside, head to the zoo, go to the park and barbeque...