All aboard for a fun time!

The past few days have been full of fun activities and yummy treats. Grandma Allmen was in town and it was Andrew's birthday on Thursday!  Daniel was also dedicated at our church on Sunday.

We kicked things off on Wednesday with Andrew bringing "dirt" to co-op.  He liked it but didn't touch the gummy worms hiding inside. Note to self: don't put coconut on kids' stuff in the future, they can't handle the texture.  Many of his classmates didn't want their treat because of the fake grass.

Well hello there grandma!  It is nice to see you again.

Andrew woke up on the morning of his birthday requesting candy for breakfast.  I met him halfway by putting chocolate, marshmallows, peanut butter, and bananas into pancakes.  For some reason I think anything can be breakfast appropriate when housed in a pancake!  Later we headed out to the neighborhood Yoga Shop for a free music/movement class.  He did a great job following directions and dancing along to the music.  His favorite part was popping the bubbles the teach blew around the room!

All that activity tuckered this new two year old out.  Here's the aerial shot of him sleeping in his new toddler bed!  Bear, dog, brown bear check!  All the babies must accompany him for proper sleep.

It was good he rest because we went to a very exciting train themed diner for dinner.  Decked out in train themed decor, this 50s diner is a dream for the young and young at heart.  

Yes, our food was delivered by a train..if only the Metra brought us dinner every night.

Andrew was excited when his birthday cupcake came out, but loved the train whistle on top most of all!

Daniel took a ride in the train but big brother didn't want to join in the fun.

Friday was no fun with both boys visiting the doctor and getting shots.  Andrew made the most of it by taking full advantage of the Sesame Street stickers he was given.  

We had more train themed fun on Saturday when Alan got out the Lionel set from his dad.  It was pretty impressive to see how fast it could go.

We took a walk to a new park in the neighborhood.  Andrew was mostly interested in the wood chips but he managed to show off his climbing skills too.

 Daniel just enjoying life and loves watching his big brother.

Sunday was full of celebrations, friends, and food.  Some friends joined us at church to see Daniel's dedication.  Here's Andrew making sure there is a Bible between himself and "Mali."  

Here's the family up in front during the dedication.


Afterwards we had a delicious lunch (gracias carnitas tacos) and Andrew got his birthday cake!

While Daniel didn't get any cake he had fun being held by our neighbors.

After cake Andrew immediately started opening gifts (without us in there).  How is it that his has this birthday routine down already?  He got some great gifts.  Here he is cutting food from Tom and Sarah.

After nap he tried out his tricycle and Northwestern train from Grandma.  He can barely pedal right now, but I'm sure he'll get the hang of it by the end of summer!

Daniel poses here for his monthly shot.  I love those bright eyes and killer smile!

 -rachel

If Daniel could write this entry...

Lately things have been getting a lot more interesting around here.  I am able to control my giant head a little better and mom has been taking us on outings more and more.  I like getting out and seeing the world.  When we stay home mom just makes me sit with her on the couch while she checks facebook or makes me take these stupid pictures (oh no my four month shoot is coming soon).

 I know resistance is futile.  She'll keep taking the picture until  I make a cute face so I might as well comply.

Andrew has been having fun doing art projects lately.  I guess he is even in a class.  I usually sleep through it so I can't say it is all that interesting.


I can't wait till mom turns the markers over to me!


Back when Dad was on spring break we got to go see the butterflies at the Nature Museum.  I think Andrew was a little scared, but I was very brave.

I have been really happy lately bouncing in my chair.  Mom also thinks I was playing Peek-a-boo. 

 
Do you think this is the face of a boy who peek-a-boos?

To I went to the mall with my homeboy Nicholas.  He is a week older than me and was born in 2012 but he doesn't rub it in my face.

 We like hanging out.  Sometimes the big bro and sis come too.

 I think we've grown a lot since our last adventure together to the Garfield Park Conservatory back in February.


Our adventure out today ended with Andrew and Amalia's gymnastics class.  Nicholas and I usually hang out by the the door or are worn by our mommies.  I'm pretty glad that I was asleep in my carseat and not worn by mommy when she did this!

 Andrew is getting better at gymnastics I guess.  He can do somersaults really well (and he gets a lot of stickers) and now started climbing the walls!

 Check out that headstand!!!  We both have a large head to stand on.

I'm now pretty tired so I'm going to suck my pacifier and peace out.   Just wait until there are more videos of the tricks I will do.  For now I'm having fun just being the baby.

Spring break - man stuff

My spring break is now over - tonight I go to bed with the knowledge that classes resume in the morning.  It has been a well-rounded break.  Lots of sleep, lots of time playing with the kids, date night with Rachel, etc. But this post is devoted to those man topics I am most interested in: sports and tools.

On Saturday, the family went up to Evanston to take in the Spring Game Practice of the NU football team.  Citing lack of depth, Coach Fitz cancelled the scrimmage and held an open practice instead.  The weather was ok, but not quite warm enough.  When the boys are older they can sign up to participate in a free clinic and hang out with the players on a field.  For now, we headed back to the car and went home.  We were just happy that Andrew did not try to run away from Willie (irrational fear of people dressed up in costumes).

 Perhaps the lack of hot drink like his Dad gave Andrew the blues.  

 Daniel did not show much interest in football.  Then again, he is 3 months old and does not show an interest in very much....

The only time we will ever be on the 50 yard line?

Proof - he was not "all done" with Willie this time around.

The other aspect of spring break was home improvement.  We thought a lot about different house projects (hmmm...is there still time to make that master list?) and engaged in a couple of little projects.  The new challenge for me is making furniture.  I have never attempted finished carpentry (wait - there was that bookshelf I made for Rachel in college, but Dad mostly just showed me what to do), but we have a need for more furniture.  I had been bothering Rachel about a new coffee table for the living room, but Craigslist was not producing viable options.  

So she suggested I try to make one, and pointed me to various DIY sites with plans.  I was skeptical, but willing to try.  The problem was, we wanted a nice stained wood and it could be expensive to buy the oak.  So I decided to rummage.

In the garage, I stashed away some solid wood panels from the old basement walls.  I borrowed a sander and went to work.  The wood looked nice, but the panel was not quite sized correctly.  Looking again, I saw that the garage walls were paneled with the same wood.  

  

I pulled a couple of them down, cut them to size, sanded them, and assembled it into a nice little table.  (with a little help from our neighbor, the professional carpenter)

It is clamped together as the glue dries.  Next will be staining.  Fun!

You will notice in the background the other project - the next set of shelving for the basement.  These will be used as part of my workshop, as my workbench was constantly cluttered with junk.  Now at least the junk is out of the way.

Once the coffee table is done, we are looking at paint samples for the living room.  We are not in love with the color so now might be the time for a redesign.

-alan

A blessed Easter weekend

We had a great weekend celebrating Easter here in Chicago with our family of four.  While it was sad to not see our extended families, it was kind of nice to be here and start a few traditions on our home turf.  Also this weekend kicks off Alan's Spring Break so it was great knowing that our fun will continue into next week!

Friday night we worked together to dye Easter eggs.  We didn't do anything fancy but it was appropriate for Andrew's current skill level.  Check out that look of concentration as he dropped the food coloring into the water!  I hope he aces his science labs in the future.

 Andrew anxiously waited as the eggs absorbed the dye.  He kept wanting to spoon them out prematurely so we tried to distract him with books and photos.

Voila!  We are done and no one spilled or drank the dye.  Win for the parents!

Saturday morning our neighborhood held its 16th Annual Egg Hunt.  I was on the event committee and got to  help set up the event.  It was fun to meet other parents in the neighborhood in the process.  The event was a great success with beautiful weather and over a hundred happy parents and hunters.  

Like the sign?  Yep, I made that.  

We let the youngest group in first and Andrew quickly got to work picking up eggs, opening them, dumping the treats in his bucket, and moving on to the next one.  There was a 10 egg limit per kid, but in the end Andrew picked up every orphaned egg in the 0-2 so his bucket was quite full.

Andrew's passion for egg hunting didn't translate to liking the Easter bunny. She said something to the effect of "Mom, just take the picture quickly."  

Daniel had to follow his big brother's lead in protesting the bunny hold.  To be fair, he hadn't eaten for three hours and was ready to go home.  

When I took him back in my arms he made amends with the bunny and started flirting by flashing his dimples.

 

Andrew enjoyed sorting through his spoils when he got home.  He definitely knows the word candy now and enjoys sneaking pieces of chocolate when he can.

 This morning we donned our Easter best and went to church.  We enjoyed a yummy breakfast and then had a beautiful service.  There was a lot of nice music and heartfelt sharing.  We are thankful for our church!

After nap time Andrew went over to our pastor's home to participate in another egg hunt. The other kids who were supposed to join him were napping so he had full run of the backyard.  He got really good at finding eggs that were hiding under and behind things.  We are going to have to keeping playing this game at home.

Do you want some candy? 

We hope you had a wonderful Easter!  

-Rachel

Mom's Eye View

It is time for me to get "back" to blogging and share my take on raising two adorable little guys.  Today I'll mostly do it in pictures but I hope to share more of my heart through words in the days ahead.

Daniel is quickly filling out and getting more adorable everyday.  In a few days he'll be three months, but here's his photo from the beginning of March.  

Andrew spends a good amount of time everyday playing "tracks" and "choo choos."  It is fun to see his imagination and fine motor skills develop more and more each day.  He is also getting good at identifying the trains that pass by our home by both sight and sound.  He can be in the other room and say "Metra!" and be 100% correct (other options include Freight Train and Amtrak). 

He also has a passion for helping us cook.  Maybe he just wants to sneak tastes, but he definitely learns a lot on the process.  This week he correctly identified ginger at the grocery store and commonly asks for cinnamon to be added to our dishes.  It is fun to let him get involved even if it means that the clean up might be a bit more involved.  Can you tell I'm proud of my little boy?

Everyone always asks how the brothers are getting along.  I really think their relationship is better than I ever could have expected.  Sure, Andrew occasionally swats or throws toys his way but there are more sweet moments than sour ones.   

Daniel's smile has definitely emerged and brings joy to my heart everyday!  Check out those dimples.  

I think the best thing about getting to stay home is doing "special" projects with Andrew everyday.  Here he was painting and having a wonderful time.  

 This week Andrew and I put together the double stroller.  He successfully threaded the washers as we put on the wheels.  Then we took a stroll in the basement before going out on the open road!

 When we returned from our walk Andrew found some chalk and started to decorate the ground and our lawn deer.  I kind of hate chalk but it is such fun for Andrew that I am warming up to it.

As big brother stayed outside, Daniel took a nap in the poof ball he was wearing on the walk.  It was probably too warm for the day, but it meant I didn't need to put on more clothes/blankets.

 When Daniel woke up he spent some time being absolutely adorable in the bouncy chair.  He really can get that chair rocking.

Tomorrow I will post pictures of our Easter weekend festivities.  Stay tuned.

Rachel

Busy life with two kids - in photos (by necessity)

Wow, it has been over two months since I blogged about Daniel's birth.  In that time he has grown a ton - he is topping the scales at 13+ pounds nowadays, and is in the 90+ percentile for height and head size.  He is a big baby.  His schedule is getting better, as he is sleeping more at night and is more alert during the day.  Rachel recently decided that he is a "keeper" (though I don't think that Northwestern hospital has a return policy) so he must be getting cuter.

Things are obviously busy around the house - as anyone who has/had multiple kids can attest.  Rachel has to work hard to keep up with the laundry, toy pick-up, shopping, cooking, cleaning, and a thousand other unheralded mommy duties.  I am in a rare mid-winter stretch of 5-day weeks at school, getting up early to prep for classes and coming home to play with the boys in the evening.  We are going to bed tired and the free time is at a minimum - but it is a fulfilling life.

Since our family guests have left, the basement has transformed into a nice play area - Andrew enjoys blocks, balls, and his play kitchen.  He will spend hours "cooking" as he takes out his play food and makes various concoctions for us to try.

His new favorite is to approach us and ask, "Mommy, play?" or "Daddy, play?" as he cocks his head and gives us a cute look.  Very manipulative.

  

Winter has almost gone, but the snow held off to the last few weeks.  Andrew finally donned the snow suit twice recently so that he could play in the snow.

 Rachel got stir crazy last week, so she took the kids out in the wagon despite the elements.  Don't worry, Daniel was sufficiently bundled to sleep the whole time.

In the living room, Andrew has his train tracks to play with - so that he can play with toy trains as he watches the big trains roll by in the window.  Notice the new rug?  A recent purchase, as we are trying to add some decor to the house.  Several things finally went up downstairs in the play/TV room, but more work needs to be done in the living room.  We have some chairs on order to add to the furniture, which should arrive by the end of the month.

As far as home projects, I did fit in a couple of things just to take a break from the everyday chores.  I painted our entry door (the interior only) a bright yellow with brown trim.  It used to be off-white, so this brightened things up a lot.

This weekend, I finished some shelves in the corner of the unfinished part of the basement.  There was a massive pile of junk there, so hopefully this will start a process of organizing down there.

Spring break will be after Easter this year, instead of before (as it traditionally was) so there are still 3 more weeks left.  No plans yet for what we will do.  Any suggestions?

-alan