Soccer!

Logan is finally old enough for soccer at the Sport Center this year!  He was SO EXCITED to start his first round of soccer.  We bought his special shin socks and got all set.  He is so cute in his lessons, making sure to follow directions exactly...such an oldest child characteristic.  He looks forward to Monday nights for soccer every week.  This session was perfect because it started after our trip to Mexico and finishes right before the baby is born!

Beach Day!

Logan got to celebrate Beach Day at school today!  How fun!  Especially fresh off the beach from our trip to Mexico, Logan was really excited to wear his swim gear to school.  Of course, trained by mom, he can't wear the swimsuit and swim shirt without the hat...gotta block those harmful rays!  Haha!  What fun!

Our Puppy

Bennett has decided several days lately that he wants to wear his puppy costume from Halloween. In fact, he has even worn it for his entire nap. Pretty cute.

Have you seen me lately?

Well, at 34 weeks cooking' this little bun, I am hard to miss! I caught a glimpse of myself passing the mirror today and had to take a photo to show my sister (living in VA) "the torpedo belly"! Baby Girl is growing into a nice sized basketball and is definitely sticking straight out!

Try something new.

We tried something new today and went to open gym at the kids' preschool.

The best part for me was watching how the brothers stick together and enjoyed playing with eachother. They had a great time!

Mexico 2012

We are home from an amazing week in Mexico with my parents!  We were lucky to get to join them for part of their trip and it was a new experience with boys who are big enough to do a lot more and enjoy more activities!  They made the trip so much fun!

 Despite Logan's silly face, he liked the "big airplane ride" and he did great, as usual.

This was Bennett's first trip with his own seat, so he enjoyed that!  

When we arrived, the boys immediately wanted to swim, so they got all their gear and we headed for the pool! 

 Logan remembered "mango smoothies" from last year and asked for one on the first day...yum!

 We walked the grounds of the resort a lot, searching for iguanas and enjoying the tropical flowers and plants.

 We always saw lots of lizards...the boys sure loved it!

Notice Logan had to point out "the baby"...as if you could miss it! 

 We also spent a lot of time on the beach.  The boys didn't even need sand toys - they just wanted to run, dig, play, and search for treasures.

 Bennett enjoyed rolling in the sand (no kidding!)

 Logan liked to search for shells and build small sand castles.

 We often saw lizards: some green, some gray, some with very bright colors.  This was a highlight for us!

 Jumping the waves with Papa and John were a big hit!  The boys were both plenty brave and just loved the surf.  Logan even went under once but when John pulled him up Logan said, "Its ok, Dad, I knew God was with me!"

 Squealing Benny!

 Washing off between the beach and the pool.

 Lifejackets and inner tubes were favorites.  By the end of the week, the boys both just wanted to swim in their inner tubes.  They did great with all their swim gear - someone mentioned, "Your kids are so white!"...well...you should see how much I cover them in the sun!

 Papa and Nana were so awesome to bring us on this trip and help us out so much!  The boys just loved it.  John and I got three (yes, 3!) nights out for dinner while my parents kept the kids in for dinner and bedtime.  We really enjoyed our time as a family, with my parents, and all together.

 Brave Benny in his inner tube: "I do it all myself!"

The big boys! 

 Bennett often took a nap by the pool again this year.  Logan napped a couple times, but mostly Bennett would fade in the afternoon for a little rest.

 I asked the boys if I could take their photo and this is how they posed!

 family photo

 Both kids did so great on this trip - sleeping, playing, enjoying new things.

Thanks a million to Papa and Nana for letting us enjoy a week with them in Mexico!  It was WONDERFUL!  We love you!

More Christmas

Happy 2012!  We celebrated with a visit from Papa and Nana!  The boys had a new year's parade with Papa and Nana at home while John and I got to go for dinner and a movie!  It was great!  Today we celebrated Christmas with Baggie, Bopbop, and even Scott and Jessica who are in town for a few days from Charlotte, NC.

 The boys were beyond thrilled to relive Christmas by opening a whole stash of presents from under the tree...again!

 They each came away with some really cool additions to our wooden train sets...sure to be a hit at our house!

 And these soft hockey sticks that Baggie found can help save our walls in the hallway at home...

 if its not already too late for those walls!

 Of course, we had to try those sticks out in the hall at B & Bs...they work great!  Nothing like a little hockey before we jump back in the car!

Thanks for the great little visit and for all the great gifts for our family (including baby girl)!