2 Years Old!

**We are having technical difficulties, so more pictures to come!**

Ty turned 2 years old on July 22nd. He is a happy, talkative, and spirited little guy.  

Favorites include trucks, watching the garbage truck, teasing Ralphie, playing with Cole, eating ALL of the fruit, collecting rocks, playing outside, walking by the river, and reading books.  He still loves to sing. His favorites are "wheels on the bus", "ABCs", "Five Little Monkeys", "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom", and "Itsy Bitsy Spider." 

He talks and talks and talks, and seems to pick up new words or ways to start conversations everyday. He still refers to himself as "he", and will often say things like "He fall down" or "He wants cereal."  He also says "I want pick you up" when he wants to be picked up.  He loves to talk on the phone, and loves calling Daddy at work.  He is a little parrot, and loves to repeat what he hears us say. 

We love our big guy so much, and can't believe that he's 2 already! 

Happy, happy birthday, Ty! 

7 Years Old!

On June 24th, Cole turned 7 years old. It is hard to believe how quickly the years have gone. He is a smart, funny, caring, and curious boy. 

This year brought a lot of firsts for Cole. He started full day kindergarten, and loved it. At the end of the year, Cole was chosen by the principal to be the kindergarten representative at the end of year flag lowering ceremony.  He shared his favorite experiences from the year. 

Cole also caught his first fish this year! He took a fishing class with Dad, and got his own fishing pole for his birthday. He had fun fishing with Dad on a recent trip to Lake Geneva. 

Cole still LOVES to read. His favorite books are the Magic Treehouse series, non fiction books about science and weather, and Highlights magazine. 

He still loves to tinker and build, and has put together quite a few lego sets this year. He also loves his monthly Kiwi Crate box.  It is like Christmas when it arrives, and he does a great job putting each kit together. 

He recently learned to play chess, and has been having fun playing with Daddy every evening. 

Cole is a great big brother. He loves to play with Ty, and they have fun together making up games and and getting into trouble. 

 He still loves birds, and we have had fun looking for the blue heron on our walks by the river this summer. 

We are so very proud of what an amazing boy Cole has become.  We are excited for his upcoming adventures in first grade, and can't wait to see what this year brings! Happy, happy birthday, Cole! We love you!!

Big Brother

Cole is almost 7 years old, and will finish kindergarten in just a couple of weeks. He has loved school, and is excited to be a first grader. 

He is a great big brother to Ty. He is a big helper to Mom and Dad, and likes to make up games and obstacle courses for he and his brother. He still loves to read, and he is currently working his way through the Magic Treehouse series. He is otherwise reading his National Geographic books or books about weather, nature, or how things work. Every week he picks out a new weather or science related book from the library at school.

Cole building things. He loves to tinker, and has become a big Lego fan. He is creative, loves art projects, and can sometimes be found helping Mom bake. 

He has grown up so much this year, and we are so proud of our Cole! 

Update - Ty

Here is a long overdue update on Mr. Ty.  He is now 21 months old, is very busy, and has lots of personality. 

Favorites: Cole, Ralphie, eating, drinking, playing outside, cars, trucks, doing whatever Cole is doing, throwing things when he doesn't get his way, going to the park, throwing the ball for Ralphie. 

Ty talks quite a bit these days. He can be hard to understand sometimes, but makes it a point to repeat himself over and over until he is understood. 

He is working out the difference between "me", "I", "you" and "he/she."  He usually refers to himself as "he", and will say things like "he fall down" or "he want to go outside."  It's hard for him to make "r" sounds, so Ralphie is more like "waphie." He seems to pick up on just about everything, and his vocabulary grows daily. 

He loves to sing, and can often be heard belting out "Wheels on the Bus" or "Happy Birthday." 

Ty LOVES to eat, often having 2 breakfasts. His favorites are spaghetti, blueberries, cereal, yogurt, carrots, and pickles. 

He is a more "spirited" personality than his brother. He is a really happy boy, and reminds us to laugh often. He likes to push boundaries, and can usually be found getting into trouble (and usually laughs when he is scolded).  

We love our big guy very much, and we are so very thankful that he is ours. 

First haircut! It was time to get rid of the mullet.