Chelsea's Sweet 16

We left Ashley's party and headed to a nearby park to help Chelsea and her family and friends celebrate Chelsea's 16th birthday. As soon as we arrived, P was enthusiastically greeted by his friend - and Chelsea's younger brother - Colby.


They eagerly headed for the playground. Daddy A got a photo of Colby helping a brother friend out as they played a climbing-on-the-slide-and-playing-tag sort of game.


There was delicious food and lots of fun and fellowship. Unfortunately, the boys ran out of steam before we were able to get a piece of this:

It looks like it was delicious, though! We had a wonderful time at the party and loved being able to help Chelsea celebrate her milestone!

Ashley's birthday

Our friend Ashley had her birthday at a local restaurant a couple of weeks ago. The restaurant is right on the river, so besides singing "Happy Birthday" and eating cupcakes, we all enjoyed relaxing by the water. Well, the boys started off just chilling out by the water...



...but before I could blink, that turned into running around on the lawn with their friend Grace.


Daddy A did manage to get all three of them to stop for a few seconds so he could snap a quick photo.


And then the kids were off and running again. We had a great time!

Tweetsie Railroad, 2011 edition

Well, May is here (I'm a bit late posting this, as today is May 31!), and Tweetsie Railroad has re-opened its doors for the season. The second Friday in May we headed to Tweetsie after picking P up from school and having a quick lunch.

It was rainy, but the weather didn't dampen our spirits! The boys visited the face painting station. P got a James (a red train) on his right cheek, and C chose a pink snake for his right arm.

The boys took a spin on the boats

and the planes.

P rode the Tilt-a-Whirl for about 15 minutes. When Daddy A and I couldn't take it any more (Daddy A lasted longer than I did), P rode by himself for a few more minutes. All of us rode the Tweetsie Twister. These boys are pretty fearless when it comes to amusement park rides.

When we were ready to escape the rain, we headed to the Palace Saloon to see Diamond Lil and her can can girls. Now that Samantha, aka Miss Ruby, has been one of P's dance teachers for a year, he's even more excited about the show. He was telling other audience members before the show started that Miss Ruby was his dance teacher, and she was very nice, and that after the show he would "take [them] to meet her if [they] wanted". The show was cute, and both boys loved seeing Samantha. They felt so special when she came over to say hi to them right before the show!

We plan to return to Tweetsie this Saturday for a visit with a special little blue engine and his friend Sir Topham Hatt. Hopefully I'll get those pictures and a post up more quickly than I did these!

Aunt Tiffany's bridal shower and brunch in DC

My sister's friends in DC threw her a bridal shower last weekend. I really wanted to go, and since it was a cookout for couples, Tiffany suggested that I come and bring the boys. (Daddy A and my dad were both out of town, so my mom and I were flying solo. Well, not solo, because there were two of us, but you know what I mean.) That's what I decided to do, so the four of us (P, C, my mom and I) spent Saturday night at a hotel in DC.

I could not have been more pleased with the boys' behavior. I was incredibly proud of both of them. They arrived at the party and settled right in at a table.



The boys posed with Aunt Tiffany.



C discovered the juice boxes in a drink tub where he could reach them unassisted. I discovered that he has a juice box problem.


He drank all five of the juice boxes pictured here. Yes, all five. Fortunately, he didn't get sick.

Tiffany's friend Morgan offered the boys some colored chalk and a chalkboard. P and John got to work creating a masterpiece.



My sister and I had our photo taken.



And in honor of Mother's Day (and just because we love her), we also took a photo with our amazing mom.



Tiffany posed with her friends. The Capitol is behind us and to your left. (You can't see it in this picture, but I promise, it's back there!)



Sunday morning when the boys woke up, I asked them if they had enjoyed Aunt Tiffany's party. They both said yes. When I asked them if they had a favorite part, C said his was the cupcakes. (He also told Tiffany happy birthday several times!)



P said his favorite part was helping Aunt Tiffany open all of her presents.


Sunday morning we got up and went to Aunt Tiffan'y place. The boys were happy to see Tiffany, John, and Tucker! We walked to brunch together and celebrated Mother's Day.

I had a blast visiting my family, and I was especially glad I got to spend some time with my sister! I'm so excited for her and for John as they prepare to get married in August!

a dance hodge podge

Back in February, P had dance pictures taken. I received the digital images not too long ago, and since I mentioned a couple of months ago that I would share the photos, here they are!


I was really pleased with the pictures. I realize I may be just the teensiest bit biased, but he is one of the cutest cowboys I have ever seen!

The last Friday in February was the Spring Fling carnival at a nearby elementary school. Mrs. Debbie's dance school was invited to dance as part of the entertainment. P gathered with his friends and classmates by the "stage" (the paved area of the playground, where the basketball hoop was located).

He listened very carefully as Mrs. Debbie explained the order of the program and gave directions to her dance students.

P worked very hard and did his best. I think he felt a little overwhelmed by the audience. This performance was the first time the cowboys and cowgirls performed for anyone other than parents' week at dance class back in December.

Of course, at the conclusion of the performance, P (and C) were more than ready to go to the "jumpy houses" (inflatable slides and obstacle courses). The event was a fun way to kick off the weekend!

Mrs. Heather's (surprise) baby shower

Both of P's preschool teachers are expecting babies! Mrs. Heather is due first (at the end of June), so we got together and planned to give her a surprise baby shower at the end of last month. Several of us were waiting with cameras poised for her to walk through the door to her party.


We succeeded in surprising Heather! She was able to open her gifts (There were lots of diapers and wipes, since this will be her fourth boy!) while the boys were next door with Mrs. Tamra.



Once the gifts were opened, we invited the boys to join us for some snacks.



Since everyone was at school, we asked the boys and their teachers to pose for a class picture.



P asked me to stay at school, so I headed outside for recess with my oldest son and his classmates. I wasn't surprised to see that P was happy to spend all of his recess time in the sandbox.

I am incredibly appreciative of all of Heather's work with P, and I'm glad I was able to be a part of welcoming her newest baby into the world!

Say WHAT?

You know how sometimes a child will say something funny and you think, "That was funny! Not super important or truly noteworthy, but something I know I'll remember for a while and I'd like to remember in 30 years"? One of those things happened yesterday, so I figured I'd document it here. Everyone can have a chuckle and I'll have it documented for posterity so I can remember it later.

C has been sort of working on potty training lately. By "sort of," I mean that some days he's interested and does really well, and other days he's not feeling it and does, ahem, not so well. I totally realize that I could push it harder and we could really work on it, but I've decided that will be a project for this summer, and for now, I'm letting him take the lead and we're sort of potty training.

Yesterday, C was desperate to wear his "Melmo" underwear. Begging. Crying when I tried to put on his Pull-Up. On the verge of a huge meltdown. So I offered C the following suggestion. "C," I said, "you may wear these underwear if you go use the potty now and promise me that you will really pay attention and try to use the potty all morning." He agreed. I had to go to Hickory (a good 30 minute drive) and run some errands, so I was a bit nervous, but he did a GREAT JOB! He went to the potty three times, sometimes because I asked if he needed to go and he said yes (I didn't take him at all if he said he didn't need to go - I'm trying to train him, rather than training myself!), and once because he said he needed to go without being asked!

On the way home, even though C didn't fall asleep he did get close. I think he kind of zoned out, and he did wet his pants in the car. No big deal - still a good morning. We went inside and I got C diapered and settled in for his nap. When C woke up from his rest, I left P downstairs watching SuperWhy! and headed upstairs to put C back in underwear. His Elmo underwear was in the bathroom sink, so he started looking for other options. After a bit, he held up his Cookie Monster underwear and requested, "Dese, pease". I said, "You want Cookie, C?" The baby monitor was on downstairs, and P came flying up the stairs calling, "Mommy! Mommy! I need to tell you somefin', Mommy!" He stopped in the middle of the hallway, took a deep breath, and walked into C's room and calmly and politely said, "I would like a cookie too, please."

I somehow managed to keep from laughing (too hard) out loud and explained what kind of "Cookie" C and I were discussing. Then the boys each had a snack (but not a cookie) and we played outside before dinner. On the inside, I was cracking up at P's selective hearing!