The UPS Man and the Ninja

So, we had our Halloween celebrations! We went to the Zoo Boo at the Detroit Zoo, and we trick or treated with Our Little Men. We had a great time with all of those events! Grant and Gavin got a TON OF CANDY (that we are still trying to finish up, by the way). As I told you in the last post, the boys were dressed as a Ninja (Grant) and a UPS Man (Gavin). Here are a couple of photos of them all dressed up during their Halloween events. The Itsy Bitsy Spider is Petra (my cousin Cherie's daughter).

After trick or treating, Todd took Grant to the Michigan hockey game. They arrived a bit late due to the fact that Grant wanted to keep on trick or treating for quite a while. They got there before the end of the 1st period, and Grant was pumped watching it. When out of no where in the 2nd period a hockey puck went over the glass and got Grant in the forehead. According to Todd, Grant was scared until he realized that he wasn't going to die, but then it became quite a cool experience. I was scared to death when Todd called until I got this picture of Grant in the Emergency Room. Once I saw this ... I knew that he was just fine!

It's a bit blurry because it was sent from Todd's Blackberry, but he got to keep the puck that hit him in the head, and someone got him a hockey stick to remember the moment! Not that the scar that he'll have forever won't remind him! He was so excited to tell me what had happened to him when they got home. He had to take the puck and his ticket to the game to school that Monday to show everyone! He was so excited and it didn't bother him at all that he had to wear this huge bandage for 4 days! He was actually a little disappointed when the stitches were removed and he didn't have to wear anything over it.

We have also found out since the last post that we will be adding another little man to our family. We are pretty excited to meet this newest little man, and to finally pick a name. When we had the ultrasound on October 30th, he weighed in at 1 lb 1 oz (I guess that's right on target according to the gal performing the ultrasound). Here are a few pictures of that ultrasound.

This is one of his feet. This foot is HUGE compared to the last photo we had in August of BOTH feet. When Todd saw this picture, he said "If this baby is a girl, she's going to be a Sasquatch!" (is that spelled right?!?!?)

This is a picture of the baby's face. He is looking straight at you. The top of his head is to the left of the picture and his chin toward the right. You can see his eyes and nose and mouth in there too.

Here is a profile view of the baby. His head is to the left and his tummy toward the right. You can see his little nose ... he looks so cute! I cannot wait to meet him! Even Grant gives him kisses every day and Gavin tries to see him through my belly button. He always says, "my can't see in there ... it's too dark!" It's cute how they are getting excited. Grant even likes to feel the baby move when he starts kicking and punching!

We can hardly believe that Thanksgiving is coming up this week! Grant has a Thanksgiving concert that he says he's going to sing in, but we'll see .... he always gets shy once he gets in front of a crowd. We are looking forward to getting together with all of our family on Thursday and shopping on "Black Friday". It's going to be quite a busy weekend! We send our wishes to everyone for a Happy Thanksgiving!

PS ... please forgive me if the spacing is off ... it's hard when I add a ton of pictures to get this "just right".

Happy Turkey Day ... Gobble Gobble!!

Update! Update! Update!

It's about time, right?!?!?! I looked at this website and realized that it had been three months since I updated and I feel AWFUL! There is so much to show you!

Since my last post, Todd and I found out that we will be adding another little man or a little lady to our family (we'll find out on October 30th which). The boys are taking it pretty well and are very excited that they will be sharing a room together. I personally think that they are more excited about getting bunk beds than being in the same room together ... but if bunk beds make it OK ... well, then bring on the bunk beds!

Grant started kindergarten! Unbelievable! He got on the bus NO PROBLEM! And, now he's running ahead of me to get on the bus before I can give him a hug and a kiss! He's already embarrassed by mom .... my little man is getting so big!

Gavin is working on getting into Pre-School with his one remaining task ... POTTY TRAINING. As I'm sure you all remember with Grant ... that was not an easy task. With Gavin, it seems like it's twice as difficult as it was with Grant. He has some GREAT days ... and then he has his bad days. We've tried the big boy underpants (which he hates!), I've tried having him walk around naked in the house (I figured he would definitely tell me when he had to go ... never assume!)...I've tried everything I can think of. But, everything I remember from Grant and have read say that he'll give up the pull ups when he's ready. But it's so darn frustrating! But, like I said ... he's having more good days than bad days. I'm hoping by Thanksgiving he'll be going a couple days a week.

We took the boys to the cider mill this month and we picked apples and our own pumpkins (I forgot to take pictures of that .... idiot!). The boys had a BLAST! They thought it was so cool to pick out their own pumpkins in the patch! It was so much fun watching them! Now, we'll have to have them carve them into Jack-O-Lanterns for Halloween! They are so excited for Halloween! Grant is going to be a Ninja and Gavin is going to be a UPS man! Hilarious! But, when he saw the costume, it was an automatic "My gonna be the delivery guy!". So, that's exactly what he's going to be.

We're taking the boys to the Zoo Boo at the Detroit Zoo tomorrow night, and I'll have to update with pictures of that. It will definitely be sooner than three months from now! But, the boys are looking so forward to that. My cousin, her husband and their daughter, Petra, are joining us. And my parents and her parents will be joining us as well! We should have a good time ... I'm just praying for NO RAIN!

And ... Gavin and I spent a day with Nana learning how to make applesauce! It was really fun! I didn't realize how simple it was ... and since it's the only applesauce the boys will eat, I'm glad I learned how to make it! Now, we don't have to ration it! Gavin had the job of tasting (he really liked that part). It was time consuming ... but it was easy and we had a blast!

Until the next post .... Here are a few pictures of the boys from the past three months ... I'll update again soon!

My ... They've come a LONG Way!

Here are a couple BEFORE and NOW photos of the boys and their DziaDzio (English to Polish translator says this is how you spell it ..... just doesn't look right to me ... but that's what it says!). There is one thing for sure that I can say ... He sure loves his grandsons! They sure like learning how to use his tools and then sitting with him in his chair. And .... I think DziaDzio sure enjoys showing them how to use the tools and relaxing with them as well! Looking at these pictures, I just cannot believe how quickly time passes by! It seems just like yesterday when GRANT was born .... and now we have Gavin who is almost 2 1/2! It's nuts! But looking at the joy that these boys have brought to us and our families...it's just wonderful!

Priming .... One Step Closer!

So, we have primed our basement walls. I still have to spackle some areas going up the stairs, and get that primed, but the MAIN AREA IS PRIMED and just about ready to paint. Todd still has some items to clear out of the basement, but once those are moved ... Painting here we come! We had the boys help us prime the walls. That was quite an experience ... goodness was it! I think we had more primer on the floor than on the walls, but they had a good time! I didn't even have to get my roller back into the primer for quite some time! Here are some shots of the boys in their painting gear and equipment in hand!

"I'm just a Dance Machine" ....

Show Me How the Little Piggies Eat!

Gavin LOVES his ice cream sandwiches! Well, he flat out LOVES ice cream! But, then again ... who doesn't? He has an interesting way of eating these tasty treats too! He opens the packaging and then pulls off the top cookie. If he can ... he'll flip it over and remove the lower cookie as well. He eats these two items first and THEN....he dives in for the rest! I guess he saves the best part for last.

Graduation Day!

Today was Grant's graduation from preschool! Wow! I still cannot get over the fact that he will be starting Kindergarten in the fall! How time has flown by .... it's just unreal to me that my little man has turned five and he's getting ready to start school. It seems like yesterday that I was sitting in the hospital holding him.


Well, today was a rather warm day, but it had a nice breeze to it, so it wasn't too bad. Grant wore cap and got a diploma. They sang a couple of songs (which of course Grant didn't really sing ... he just stood there with a weird look on his face ...), did their ABC's in sign language and "hopped into Kindergarten". It was really a cute ceremony. Here are few pictures from the day ....

He shoots .... He Scores!

Grant scored two goals in his game last weekend. Tomorrow is his last game, and he isn't too thrilled about that. I'm hoping that he'll want to play again in the fall, but he says that he wants to play football. I've done a little research on the local Pop Warner football leagues here in the area and HOLY COW is that ever expensive! And for something I don't even know if he'll like! But here's a little clip of one of Grant's goals from last weekend ....

Grant and Gavin shared a nice little moment during one of the shifts Grant was on the sideline. It was so cute! Gavin just wanted to be with Grant and Grant took him under his wing and watched the game with him! Gavin didn't want to come back and sit with mommy and daddy, but alas ... Grant was called back into the game and Gavin had to come back to us! But here is a cute little picture of the two of them sharing a moment...boy, do I wish there were more of them.

A Day at Papa and Nana's

So, I took the boys to Papa and Nana's house last week, and we had a good time! Todd needed to get some stuff done around the house without the boys interrupting, so ... we headed on down.

While we were there, we had lunch with Papa at McDonald's and then headed on in to Coldwater to see Nana at The Museum Gallery. The boys got to feed the fish and sadly, we found out that Big George had passed .... so there weren't so many big fish to feed this time around. Then we headed into the gym and the boys played there for an hour and a half while Todd's dad and I talked.

When we got back to Nana and Papa's house ... Grant wanted to show off how he could ride a two wheeler. He did such a great job! He was a little upset that there weren't any sidewalks and that he had to stay in the driveway, however ... he managed quite well in their HUGE driveway!

While Grant was showing off on his bike, Gavin went into the barn and "started up" the four-wheeler. He even remembered his helmet! It was really funny watching him "tear out" of the barn on that machine (well, it's a battery operated vehicle that doesn't really go that fast, but he thought he was FLYING!).

The next day ... before we left, the boys noticed that the field behind Papa and Nana's was being planted. There was a tractor going up and down the field and he was really moving fast (for a tractor anyway ...). Grant and Gavin just had to see what was going on! So, they ran to the edge of the field and when the tractor came their way, they waved. They were both invited to take a ride in the tractor and, of course, both declined ("nu-uh"). But, as soon as he started the tractor back up, Grant decided that yes ... he did want to ride in the tractor. So, when he came back around, Papa helped Grant up into the tractor and they rode up and down the field twice! Grant had so much fun! I never realized how large these tractors were until I stood there trying to get a picture of Grant sitting in it! It was pretty neat!

Can you tell we're part Polish??

Ok ... so, I really have NO CLUE what made our boys dress in such crazy outfits the other day, but Gavin and Grant must have decided that they wanted to show anyone they could that, yes ... they are part Polish!

Grant insists on wearing this particular pair of sweatpants quite frequently ... and really ... as long as we aren't going into public, I let him wear them inside the house. Gavin, well, he's decided that Grant's shoes are the best shoes around, and he would much rather wear his. Again, as long as we aren't going into public .... inside the house is OK.

I don't know .... you tell me though .... Is this just being silly, or is my Polish side really shining through?!?!?!?

Undefeated!

So far Grant's soccer team is undefeated! Grant has scored at least two goals in each game and in his last game he scored FOUR! If he could just control the ball a little better ... he would score so many more! I'm not bragging ... there isn't a goal keeper in this age group, and really ... a few of the children on his team seem to shoot the ball just a shy wide. They haven't really grasped the fact that they can stop the ball with their feet and line up their shot .... so, it really leaves a lot of disappointing "ooooh"'s sounding from the side line full of hopeful parents. But he has two more games ... and we're keeping our fingers crossed that he keeps up the good work! I am really surprised at how well he does on a team. He is passing to players on his team and working with them to get to the goal. Sure, he gets disappointed when he isn't the one to score, but we tell him that he helped the child that scored because he passed them the ball or he blocked one of the other players from coming and taking the ball. That seems to make him happy. GO GRANT!

Grant's 5th Birthday Party

Grant had a wonderful birthday party at Pump It Up! He invited a few cousins, some friends, and of course, Godparents and Grandparents. Everyone seemed to have a great time and Grant was very excited that he was able to share his birthday with everyone!








Grant picked out his cake from our favorite place .... Holiday Market, and our favorite decorator, Don, made Grant's cake. He has made all of the boys' cakes since Grant's 2nd birthday and they have always just been fabulous! Grant wanted a "scary dragon"...and it turned out perfect! He was so happy when he saw it! It was "just want I wanted!" he said. And it sure looked like EVERYONE enjoyed it!

Our Little Men are getting so big ... so fast! We just hope that some of this nastiness that they have toward us as their parents and each other fades quickly! But, something tells me that won't happen for quite a few more years! ha!

Grant's First Soccer Game ....

Last Saturday was Grant's first soccer game. It was a cold, windy morning, but he was ready to go! Each player plays equal time, but Grant did get to play quite a bit. It amazes me how many kids just don't want to get out there and play. There are kids that run off the field to check out a patch of dandelions and there are little girls that just twirl in the middle of the field or lay on the ground while the other children just continue to play around them. It was rather entertaining! I did video tape all of the plays that included Grant ... but, now ... I have to figure out how to convert these video clips from my video camera to put them up here. I ordered the software that is, of course, "proprietary" for this particular camera and they can't "just give it to me" so when that comes, you can all see Grant's GOALS! Yes ... I said GOALS! The final score of the game was 3-1 and Grant scored two of the goals! It was very exciting! And, when they clips get put up here, you'll hear how excited I was for him! "Go Grant...Go Grant! YAY!" He had a great time and cannot wait until Saturday's game.

Tomorrow is Grant's birthday ... he is going to be FIVE! When I think back to the time when he was born ... it just amazes me that this time has flown by so fast! He is turning into such a neat kid. Sure, he can be very (and I do stress very) frustrating at times, but he is really neat. When he isn't being a snot ... he is the sweetest, most creative ... just the neatest little boy to be around. We have a special day planned for his birthday and I just hope that he has fun! We will, of course, take a time out around 2:00 so that he can get his nap in. He is such a BEAR without it ... and hopefully we'll finish off the afternoon with Horton Hears a Who and then off to dinner with Papa and Nana.

Be on the look out for more pictures! I'm going to try to get those up as soon as possible (although Todd and I will be in MEXICO - Ha! - until Thursday...so maybe not until next weekend). Thanks for reading ....

Grant's First Soccer Clinic

Today was Grant's first soccer clinic. He met his new coach and his teammates on the "blue team". He was a little shy at first about sitting down with the player from the Ann Arbor Arsenal that was running his section of the clinic, but given a few minutes to warm up ... he did awesome! He had a blast! We were almost brought to tears watching our little man playing his first organized sport! He has been pretty pumped about playing since Todd took him to get his shin guards, socks and cleats. He had to try them on for me as soon as they got home so that I could see what everything looked like!

He actually listened to instructions while they were called out in each exercise! He impressed us with a lot of his abilities and how he kept at it until he got it. He didn't even get frustrated! That was a huge boost for me since I've worried so much about him going to kindergarten and throwing some sort of fit if he didn't understand something! Phew! They had to come up with different ways to move the ball (besides kicking), different ways to move (besides running), and they learned how to change directions without touching the ball. Grant was really proud of himself when he "mastered" that! We even heard a few "Mommy...Daddy ... did you see that?!?!?"

Grant had a great time ... he scored three goals and reminded us of it several times. The above video shows the goal that resulted in the "clinic coach" saying "Nice Shot #19!" (that's Grant's number by the way .... ). How exciting...and the pride that I felt when I heard that! That's OUR child that they were praising! And, of course, Grant had to make sure that we knew that too!

When we came home, that's all he wanted to do ... play soccer! And, he can't wait until this week's practice on Wednesday or the game! He's so excited about soccer, he has Gavin DEMANDING that he should play too! Maybe next year ....

Child Safety

So ... we've been trying to keep things in our house very safe. Gavin likes to open the refrigerator, open the oven, and get into just about every cupboard, room and closet that he shouldn't. We went hog wild with the child safety devices. We even attempted to upgrade the ones we had from Grant since Gavin had figured out how to circumvent them. Well, we now have SOME latches on cupboards that seem to work and covers on the burner knobs. All other child safety items have been destroyed or "figured" out by little Gavin. He is just too curious and stubborn to give up on getting into what/where he wants!

Little Bunny Foo Foo

The boys thought it would be fun to sing a little song while wearing the sunglasses left for them in their baskets by the Easter Bunny!

Quick Little Update ...

Well, it has been nearly two months since my last post. The boys have been keeping me very busy! When they are napping I'm busy keeping the house clean or getting dinner ready and then by the evening, I am ready for bed! So ... my updates have been very well ... I've really slacked off!

We had a lot of fun out in the snow this winter! I would shovel snow off our deck and down a set of steps ... the boys and I would then sled down the hill into the yard! We had a blast! It wasn't Dzia Dzia and Bushi's, but it was fun!

Grant and Gavin had a great Easter! Gavin had a hand in decorating the eggs this year, and he did a really good job! His eggs were one of two colors, but he still did a great job! Gavin did partake in the Easter egg dye to see how it tasted ..."mmm, like it" was his response, I do believe ... The Easter Bunny was very good to these boys! They got all the right candy, and all their eggs were hidden. According to Grant, though, "our Easter bunny doesn't hide eggs really well". Gavin found two eggs, while Grant found 16! Oh well ... Gavin will give him a run for his money next year I'm sure. Once Gavin found his basket, he wanted NOTHING to do with the eggs anyway!

Grant and Gavin have a lot of fun with their art projects too! They love to paint, and Gavin ... well, he likes to drink the water. This water wasn't as popular as the egg dye, but still ... he had to try it! They both have pretty creative imaginations and like to express themselves in many different ways. Grant has used nail polish on walls and furniture, and Gavin has used toothpaste on doors, carpet and walls to show their artistic abilities. I, however, prefer the more controlled atmosphere in the kitchen, on a table cloth, and mommy watching very closely for the dump of the art supplies onto the floor!

Dzia Dzia and Todd have started finishing our basement and it is really coming together. Almost all of the dry wall has been hung, and next will be the mudding. I'm hoping to get to help with that part of it. The boys have enjoyed watching all the progress and have gotten to "help" out a little bit. That really excites them, and they just talk nonstop about it! They have their own little aprons and they put them on when Dzia Dzia gets here. It is probably taking them a bit longer to do it because they have the boys tagging along, but both Todd and my dad seem to enjoy the time with the boys, and I know that the boys are really enjoying it too! They have even taken to helping with other things like mashing potatoes and they are helping me come up with ideas on how we are going to organize their toys down there. They cannot wait to have a room to play in and have a blast. Both Dzia Dzia and Bushi's house and Nana and Papa's house have basements with play areas that the boys LOVE to spend time in and we cannot wait for them to have the same thing here!

We took Grant for kindergarten round up this week! I cannot believe that he will be starting kindergarten in the fall! He took a little while to warm up, but once he did, he showed them what he knew and how well he knew it! He impressed me with his behavior and I am really looking forward to him going. We have planned a special birthday party to celebrate his 5th birthday and he is really excited about it! We are going to have some of his friends included which makes him really happy! Grant has also decided that he wants to play soccer ... so we registered him for the Spring season, and he will be starting April 19th! I'm gonna be a soccer mom! Look out ... here I come with my soccer mom SUV and my little men ready to play!

The boys and I have had our rough spots over the winter months. We've struggled with the cabin fever that set in when the temperatures were so low that we couldn't go outside. We tried to get out and go to the mall to play, we lunched at McDonald's with play areas, and we have ventured over to a little playscape place close to home. We have made it to the warmer weather again, and I am really looking forward to playing outside with them ... walking, riding bikes, going to the playground, blowing bubbles, using sidewalk chalk, watching Grant play soccer and hitting the zoo!