Busy Boys!

It has been cold this January so we have been trying to stay busy with playdates, preschool, the children museum, the Air Force Museum, the climbing gym, crafts at home (of course), baking and bundled up walks in the cold...hot chocolate too! We are embracing Winter but very excited to get back into our climbing routine this Spring! Here's a glimpse of what the boys have been doing.

Bowling Day!
Last Friday, Lucas went bowling with his class. My dear friend, Katie, took care of Axel so I could help out and join in on the fun. We had a blast! Thank you Katie!
It was so fun to watch the kids interact with each other. What a treat to spend the morning with Lucas and his buddies.Here's his entire class and teacher, Mrs.Crum.
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The Air Force museum is truly a life saver on cold, cold days. There is so much to see and learn. We love it. Here the boys are watching the B-2 promotional video...
Axel was ALL about the cockpits. So many buttons & toggles at his finger tips.
Lucas still loves the airplanes too and I think he would sit in the cockpit all day if I would let him...serious stuff!
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Pizza night! Axel LOVES pizza and is wearing half of it. A large pizza doesn't go as far as is used too. What are we going to do when they are teenagers?!

Here he is walking! Axel's getting pretty good at this whole walking thing.
Lucas was in rare form and wanted some camera time too and check out that cute new shirt from Grandma & Grandpa J.
Axel realized the camera case was empty...here he comes! (Pizza face!)
But wait, his other favorite "toy"...THE CELL PHONE! I have to take the battery out now because he figured out how to turn it on. Little stinker bug!
He'll put the cell phone down for the lawn mower but makes sure it stays close by. The cell phone and TV remote are definitely his favorites around the house and he's an eagle eye for them. We are running out of hiding places.
Look who came in for a cute photo! :) Do you see how blessed we are?!! I love these boys so, so much!
Axel on the go again. He loves spinning the entire rocking chair around in a big circle. He just laughs and laughs.
And then he's off...What else can I get or get into? Maybe I'll go empty another drawer or cupboard!
Just a glimpse. :)

Twinkle Twinkle & Mr. Cobb

Today was Nursery Rhyme Day at preschool and Lucas decided on Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. He worked for over an hour yesterday cutting out stars and adding pipe cleaners to make his star crown. We had a blast and almost everything came from his vision. Pretty cool if you ask me. :)

Here's the front....as you can see, the paper stars had a rough time at school. Next time, we'll have to buy more yellow foam.
Here's the back with a red shooting star made by Lucas...a very fast shooting star that is!
Safety pins and the stapler were quick, easy and definitely a highlight in the whole process. Mommy had fun with the felt too.
He was very proud to show of his work!
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Last night we had a visitor: Miss Sarah Cobb's Daddy, Brent, was in town and came over to spend the evening with us. Lucas was very excited and the instant Brent walked in, Lucas started running laps showing off his never-ending energy storage. Then the balls came out and then the camera. I haven't seen Lucas this excited about getting his photo taken in a long time. As you can see, he's already trying to get in good with Sarah's Daddy...smart boy! Lucas secretly loves Sarah Cobb and gets bashful when we mention her name. :) If you click here, you'll understand why, she's beautiful!
Axel didn't want to miss out either.
Then, our little photographer was all about capturing the evening...Enjoy!
Notice the little orange drawing hung up by Axel's photo? That is Lucas' birthday wish list! We love it and it needs to be framed one of these days but not yet, he adds to it daily.

See those great 8x10 photos?! They were taken by Erin Cobb...Miss Sarah Cobb's Mommy who is an amazing photographer. You can check out her work here: Erin Cobb Photography
Hmmm...no picture of Axel?!?!?! No surprises there. Lucas is not real excited about Axel these days. Now that he can walk and get into everything Lucas is doing doesn't help. Oh, to be a big brother...it's hard work!

We had a wonderful evening with Brent and were really happy he could join us for dinner. Mike has very few friends outside the climbing world but Brent is definitely one guy he enjoys hanging out with and chatting about life. It was fun to see...other-than-climbing-talk! heehhehhe. Thanks Brent, you and your family are always welcome!

We Have a Walker!

Axel took his first steps when he turned 11 months, however, we finally have proof! It's taken numerous tries to capture his newly found skill because of the distraction power the camera has. When he sees the camera, that's all he wants and will stop whatever he's doing to try to get it.

Last night, we was ready for his big performance!
Click here to see Axel walking!

One of these days, I'll get some photos of him walking...but right now, my time is spent picking up after the little rascal! :)

He's just so proud of himself!
On another note, tomorrow is Nursery Rhyme Day at preschool. We talked about different ones and the winner was: Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. So, we made a star crown and a felt world for his shirt. Tomorrow, I'll get photos of him all dressed up and ready to go so you can see how it turned out!

Axel was definitely intrigued.
Serious stuff and boy does Lucas LOVE crafts!!!
See you soon.

Winter Day Escapes

After going to the Children Museum and seeing Lucas' interest in the Solar System we just had to do a fun craft. We built our very own solar system via styrofoam balls and wood dowels. I'll have to take a photo of the final product which turned out super cute.
Book club! We just read Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay and had a wonderful time here at our house enjoying drinks, dessert (Chocolate Ganache Cake) and girl talk...oh yeah, the book too! :) Definitely a recommended read if you need a good book.
Most girls hid from the camera but I caught a few of them.
Heidi & Susie.Dana & Susan.
Dana, we hope your eye surgery goes super great! However, we still love your cute frames!For MLK weekend, we headed back to Chattanooga for some more climbing. Here's a few photos that shows Little Rock City...literally a forest full of fun rocks to climb on.
Cool trees too.
Daddy with the crash pads.
Daddy getting ready to climb while Lucas makes movies.
Axel checking out the bouldering scene just below my favorite boulder. I think it looks like elephant skin.
When not making movies, Lucas keeps himself occupied out in the forest...this day, he was a leaf shredder!
Axel taking a little break.
Hotel fun...BIG SCARY BEAR!
Rainy day = Rest day. We headed to Lookout Mountain for a hike but it was super rainy. We decided to go check out Point Park (Part of the Nat'l Park) but the view was a little foggy. We'll have to go back on a clear day.

Lucas getting his stamps.
One amazing painting which takes up the entire wall. I should have had someone stand there to show just how big this thing is.
The entrance to Point Park.
We were all ready to go in our rain coats...just look at this excitement! :)
Daddy & Lucas.
Mommy & Axel.
We then headed to the Children Museum and finally a quick hike before having dinner with our friends. Not bad for a rainy day. Monday was beautiful so we headed back to Little Rock City before driving home. A full day sunshine was definitely welcome and needed. It was a great weekend!