Our "Friend's" Race Car...

My family from Michigan was up for a visit this weekend.  They were coming to attend my Aunt and Uncle's 25th wedding anniversary party.  It was so great to see them and actually have a chance to chat and visit with them.  It has been way too long!

On their way, they came by my house for a quick visit with the boys and a little pit stop.  Little did I know that their arrival would have such an impact on the boys.  They pulled into my driveway (while the boys watched from the window) in a blue Monte Carlo.  The excitement from the boys was hilarious.  They talked about our "friend's" (which is the name they give to people who they like but don't know their name) with the blue race car all weekend.  Actually they are still talking about it!

I guess my cousin Steve picked the right car to drive up in to hit it off with my boys!  Here are a few pictures of the boys with the blue race car.  Steve was kind enough to let the boys get in and play with all the buttons!

Zachary sitting in the car:

Nicolas sitting in the car:

Zachary talking to Steve:

Nicolas driving:

A special message for Nana

Hi Nana!

The boys wanted to send you special messages...

Happy Birthday Nana!  We love you and hope you have a wonderful day!

Another trip to the Zoo!

I decided to take the boys to the zoo (Ecomuseum) this morning.  The weather was looking like it was going to be nice and we haven't been in a while.  We have passes so even if it's a bust, it's not like we had to pay to get in.  Thankfully it wasn't too busy and the weather was great!

Many of the animals were enjoying the sunshine and lack of rain.  They were out and about which was lots of fun for the boys.  They were very excited to see the ducks, otters and the bears.  Thankfully none of those animals disappointed.  The ducks were happily swimming around and dunking themselves in the water.  Zachary thought that it was hilarious and kept saying how funny they were.

The viewing area for the otters is quite fun since they like to swim up to the glass.  You can really get a great view of them especially if there aren't many people around (which there weren't).  They spent a lot of time in the water and were wrestling with one another which Nicolas found entertaining.  He kept saying that they were playing like Nico and Zachary!

The three black bears were especially fun today.  We arrived at their pen only minutes before the lady came by to give them their morning snack.  So, the bears came right up to the fence so that their food provider could throw them 4 apples a piece.  The boys got to see the bears much closer than they ever have before.  A story which they have told anyone who will listen today... including myself numerous times (as if I weren't there with them)!

We also got a really good view of the deer today:

Our nature walk:

The boys checking our the deer (or at least trying to):

My little men:

The only down side to our visit today were the mosquitoes.  The boys and I have a lot of bites but all in all, a small price to pay...

A Message for Daddy...

Daddy is in Mexico for work at the moment and the boys wanted to send him a message...

We love to be like Daddy...

Daddy usually sits on the couch with his feet up on the coffee table.  I caught the boys trying to do the same thing...

Zachary:

Nicolas:

A Walk in the Rain

Tonight the boys were in dire need of some outside time since it had been raining all day.  I was in need of allowing them to get rid of their extra energy.  So, despite the rain, we headed outside for a walk.  It turned out to be lots of fun and a much needed break from inside for the boys...


All dressed to be in the rain (raincoats and boots on):

Walking along:

Our usual stop by the yellow Hummer:

Zachary:

Nicolas:

Playing around in the puddles in the driveway:

Something Zachary said...

We were having dinner tonight and we were talking about how milk makes the boys grow big and strong like Daddy.  This is not the first time we have talked about this but it has been a while.  So, when I asked the boys what would happen if they kept drinking all that milk (they were drinking quite a bit more than usual), they would answer that they would grow to be big and strong just like Daddy.  Naturally I said, "what am I going to do with two big and strong boys like Daddy?".  Zachary responded with a straight face and without hesitation... "be happy, Mommy".

Me help too!

The boys decided that they wanted to help Mom-I and I paint the new house today.  So, we were crazy enough to give them paint brushes and an empty closet.  Away they went!  They were both quite messy in the end but it was so much fun to watch.  Sadly, I did not bring my camera along, but I did take some pictures of what they looked like when we got home (after a pretty thorough clean-up)...

Zachary:

Nicolas:

Big Boy Beds

I transitioned the boys into their toddler beds today.  We have been talking about it for a while now and I decided that after our vacation would be the perfect time to do it.  So, they slept in their big boy beds for the first time at nap time.  They were amazing.  They never missed a beat.  They went to sleep as easily as before and gave me a good nap.

They are very excited about the beds.  And boy does it ever change the look of their room.  Take a look and see:

Zachary sleeping:

Nicolas sleeping:

Our vacation...

We left on Tuesday morning and headed down to Ogunquit Maine for our first family vacation.  The boys were amazingly good in the car and did not sleep a wink.  But the complaints were minimal and so our traveling was a huge success!

We arrived in Ogunquit around 2:30 and checked into the hotel.  We got the boys set up in the room and they took a short nap.  We had to wake them to ensure that they would sleep that night, which made them a little too groggy for dinner.  But after we ate, we headed down to the beach.  It was low tide which was perfect!  The boys played in the "little oceans" that were much warmer than the actual ocean.  The boys had a blast!  They loved every second of it...

We spent Wednesday morning at the beach.  The boys played in the little ocean and in the sand.  We walked the beach looking for rocks and shells.  It was so great to see the excitement in their eyes.  After their nap we headed to Perkins Cove by trolley.  Nicolas was lucky enough to sit by the window and had the time of his life.  He never said a word and the smile never left his face.  Zachary got to sit by the window on the way back from our walk on the Marginal Way.

Thursday morning was quite cold and windy but we still headed down to the beach.  The fun thing was that there were lots of boats in the water and people flying kites.  The boys were quite happy to sit and watch it all.  We did a little bit of shopping (mainly for toys for the boys) on Thursday night in Portsmouth.  Then on Friday morning we packed up and headed back to Canada...

Here are a few pictures from our trip:

First walk up to the ocean:

Zachary running from the waves:

Nicolas playing in the sand:

Steve and I back to where we went on our honeymoon exactly 7 years ago:

Playing in the "little ocean":

Beautiful sky:

Zachary playing with Daddy's sunglasses:

Nicolas hanging around:

Nicolas started with yet another low grade fever on Tuesday night.  But he was such a trooper.  He was still in a great mood and had been enjoying himself.  He just got a little clingy every now and then.  But once that passes, he got another wave of energy and off he went...  The fever disappeared on Wednesday night just in time for Zachary to have his turn.  He had the exact same fever as Nicolas.  So, we knew it was only a matter of time before it passed.  It was gone by Friday afternoon, just in time to get back to Mom-I and Pop-I's.

Video of Zachary playing with the waves:

Video of Nicolas playing around in the little ocean (this was fever and all):