Look at those big kids...

Wow, we got Blake's pictures taken a couple weeks ago but we just got the pictures online. Then, last week we got Claire's taken since she is almost 3 now. Adorable!

I want to be little again...

Of course I don't really want to be little again, but I do love seeing life through my children's eyes. We went to a Chuck E. Cheese type of resturant and the kids both rode the merri go round. It was so cute seeing Blake on that little toy. The had seat belts for it so he could ride it all by himself.





Blake has been laughing so much right now and I got this shot this weekend. It's hilarious, he almost looks like he is crying but he isn't! ;)

Blake loves bathtime!!

Crawling, Standing, Sledding, and No More Thumb Sucking...

Well, it's been a long time since I have updated our blog. Sorry! We have had a lot of changes with our kiddos and with our life in general. I (Courtney) started a position as a part-time special education aide in the early childhood room at our school to help me get some experience and also get my foot in the door here for when I graduate with my Master's next Spring. It's taken a little time getting used to it since Brent has to get the two kids up and out the door to the sitter's before he goes to work. He's doing great at it and the babysitter even commented the other day on how impressed she is that the kids are there at about the same time everyday, dressed and fed. He does an awesome job! Since the last post, Blake has started crawling and just this past week or so has even started pulling up. It's a whole new world! I laughed at Christmas that I wasn't in a hurry and that he could just take his time, but I guess he decided to do it sooner rather than later. It's nice, because now he entertains himself a little better and is less fussy because he can get around on his own :) Claire doesn't love it quite as much because he gets into her stuff more and we here a lot of BUHHDEE! (buddy), GET OUT OF THAT, please,.... She is trying to be sweet but he doesn't listen to her and her sweetness quickly turns to absolute disgust and frustration at her little brother! Actually, we have very little to complain about. She loves him and just this past week or so, she has been really making him laugh which she thinks is just great! With the big snow this weekend (woo-hoo, snow day), Claire and Brent had some time to spend outside in the snow. On Friday, they tried making a snowman, but the snow wasn't quite wet enough to stick together well. They had a good time anyway, well, until Claire got cold and wanted to come inside :) She lasted about an hour and then she was DONE! Then today, she and Brent went to the park in town where there is a pretty good size hill to sled down. I wasn't sure how she would do, but she loved it! After the first time down with Brent, she ran over to where I was videotaping and said "that was SO fun, mom! I want to do it again!" She looked so cute all bundled up with her sunglasses on and her helmet (gotta keep that brain safe!) Since Claire is turning three in a couple weeks, we have been trying to wean her off the thumb-sucking. She has sucked her thumb since she was about 2 months old and we had gotten down to her only doing it while she slept and when she watched TV or rode in the car. But, since she starts preschool on Monday, we really wanted her to stop now! So, with the help of the thumb-gaurd from the One Step Ahead magazine, we have officially broken the habit before her third birthday. Several people at church thought that this was cruel and horrible to do to her, but I don't think so. I figure it's better to do it now instead of waiting until she goes to school and trying to break it then and her getting made fun of for it. She has done great without it and she is really proud of herself. Claire's been telling people when they ask what she is wearing on her thumb that she doesn't suck her thumb anymore because she is almost 3 years old. It's great that she sees it as a positive thing. I think that sums up our recent family activity. I'll try to get my camera working and get some pictures up on here soon, and also some from Christmas. Sorry I haven't been keeping up. Check back soon.