Slow Down Summer!!

Our short summer months are flying by at the Calvert house.  It is always a special treat for the whole family to be home from school for a couple of months.  The day after we got back from the beach we celebrated Father's Day.  The boys and I got Bryan a new electric griddle so that he can perfect his pancake-making-skills.  The boys were so excited to see Daddy open his big present.  I did have pictures to post but I just noticed that Bryan is wearing black Nike ankle socks with his flip flops.  I thought that sight might be a little too scary to share on the world wide web.  But, it was a very special day.  Bryan is the greatest.  He never gets tired of playing/wrestling with Nathan and Jordan and he takes such good care of all three of us.  He is a great leader of our household and I praise the Lord for that.

We took Nathan and Jordan to a waterpark on Monday.  We had intentions of getting some great pictures of the boys playing in the water, but they were so crazy busy that neither of us could ever escape the toddler area to grab the camera and take some pictures.  They were hilarious!  I kind of thought that maybe I would leave with dry hair since we were playing in the shallow toddler area...no such luck.  I was soaked from head to toe when we left that place.  We are kicking ourselves for not buying season passes earlier in the summer.  There's always next year. 

Today we took the boys to our church preschool play day at a local petting zoo.  Jordan loved the animals from far away and Nathan wanted to dive right into the pens with the animals.  I have a few pictures from our animal adventures today. 

Nathan LOVED petting the goats.  He gave them lots of hugs.  Thank goodness they were friendly little goats!

Jordan preferred the bunny.  The bunny was soft, cuddly, still, and didn't make any funny noises...that's Jordy's kind of animal! He does NOT like surprises.

Oh, and the best news at our house is that we finally turned our guest bedroom into a playroom.  It is glorious!!  We bought some awesome storage cubbies at Ikea, cute canvas paintings and a great rug at Target.  VIOLA!  A play room for my wild and crazy BOYS!

So long for tonight...I'm off to get a few things done before my bedtime.  :)

We're back!

We survived the long car ride...thanks to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Elmo's World!!  On the way to Florida, we stopped in New Orleans for one night.  We had to visit the French Quarter while we were there and Vivi was so excited to see the church downtown where Princess Tiana was married.  I just love her little fairytale world. 

You can't visit the French Quarter without stopping for a famous beignet at Cafe Du Monde.  Nathan and Jordan LOVED them.  Bryan said they were like a glorified funnel cake...whatever.  I think they are one of a kind and absolutely delicious!!!  Oh it makes my mouth water just to think about them. 

I had to take a picture of this mini downtown New Orleans parade.  It is just so "New Orleans!"

We finally made it to the beach.  We spent the mornings in the sand and the afternoons by the pool.

Jordy played it cool most of the time.  He was so serious about digging in the sand.  But, Nater-Tot was wild and crazy in the sand!  He was covered from head to toe every day.  Look at his face in this picture!

Nathan and Vivi wrestled in the sand too.  We got so tickled at them playing together.

She was still laughing...don't worry.  Bryan was monitoring the craziness!

After a dip in the ocean, the boys needed a snack in the shade.

In the evenings, we got cleaned up and headed out for some fun.

Can you tell that Baby Georgia will be here soon?  Jenn, your baby bump is so cute!  YAY!  We can't wait to welcome her to the family on August 3rd!

Merry-Go-Round :)

And a train!!  (You see the little strawberry on Jordan's head?  He got so excited when he saw this little train that he toppled over his own two feet.  Poor little guy!)

Actually, I guess I should fess up to the fact that the boys had HORRIBLE restaurant behavior on the trip.  They were so exhausted, hot, and hungry after waiting for our table which makes a bad combination for a 16 month old little boy.  Bryan, Grandad, and I took turns walking outside with the boys during the meals so that all the other hundreds of people in the restaurant were not completely disturbed. 

Here they are waiting so sweetly for our table to be ready.  My cup of ice water kept them very entertained.  :)   Don't let those sweet and happy faces fool you!  They turned into little terrors when we put them in high chairs at the table.  I think it makes my forhead sweat just to think about it.  The joys of parenting...right? 

After we got back home this weekend, we took them out to lunch on Father's Day and it was not nearly as traumatic. Thank goodness.  My sweet baby boys were just a little too tired after a day on the beach.  Poor little guys. 

Jordy has learned to smell the flowers from his "Pat the Bunny" book...so stinkin' cute!

We had such a wonderful time on our beach vacation.  I can't wait to take the boys back to the ocean again!  Nathan thought the waves in the ocean were hilarious and Jordan could dig in that sand all day long.  Oh, and I almost forgot to tell you that I got pinched by a crab.  I am not kidding.  I was holding Nathan and walking into the ocean and "ouch!"  I guess I stepped on that little crab and he just reached right up and pinched my foot.  I screamed and ran back up the sand and Nater-Tot was laughing hysterically!  We definitely made some good family memories.

Packing.

Yep. I have been working all day long on packing up the family for a trip to the beach.  It is quite a job, especially when I have two little helpers.  They "helped" with the laundry, "helped" give Cooper a bath, "helped" pick out their clothes from their closet, and they "helped" pack snacks for the road trip.  I think I still have several hours of work to do before I go to bed tonight, but it will be worth it when we cross that Florida line on Sunday.  We will be driving in a big van with Aunt Jenn, Uncle Jason, and Vivi...yes...we are crazy.  That will be four adults and three children in one car for a two day car ride!  You can go ahead and start praying for us now.  HA!  I am armed with Elmo videos, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse videos, lots of stickers, a variety of snacks, and some of their favorite books.  My sweet parents will be following in their car behind us so if it doesn't work out well to all ride in the van, there might be some seat shifting going on.  I can't wait to let you know about our trip when we return.  See ya in a week!

Guy's Night!

*This is Bryan* Becca left around noon today for an overnight trip with some of her girlfriends, leaving just us guys to fend for ourselves! I hope she has a great time but more importantly I hope I can get this house back in order before she returns! I can’t begin to tell you what twin 16 month olds can do to a house in less than an hour. Imagine two tiny cyclones spinning furiously out of control and everything they come in contact with gets tangled, knocked over, wet, moved, bumped, unplugged, turned-off, turned back on, hidden, stepped on, stuck on, stuck in, etc, etc. I did have a GREAT time with my boys and even though I am exhausted, I can’t wait to start it all over tomorrow morning. Here are a few pictures from our night.

First we went to Petsmart so we could watch the dogs play who were staying in the Pets Hotel. Cheap entertainment! When they saw the big white dog, they started saying, “Coo-Coo-Cooper”. He really does look like a giant version of our dog.

After we left Petsmart we went over to the mall to walk around for awhile. We watched the merry-go-round for a few minutes and then stopped by the Disney Store to pick up a prize. One Goofy+One Pluto=Two Happy Boys!

Then we headed home for a few crazy hours before bed time. Jordan decided to feed his snack to Cooper. When I told him “No”, Nater-tot decided to help by eating the gold fish off the floor. (Sorry Becca)

I caught Nathan putting magnets in Cooper’s water bowl! (one of his favorite hobbies). While I was washing his hands Jordan put two more magnets in. Like I said, Little Cyclones!

We finished up the night with a few books, an episode of Mickey Mouse, and a half dozen hugs. I have two sweet boys and if they sleep all night I might just have to make them waffles in the morning.

Guy’s night was fun but I really missed my wife tonight. I don’t know what I would do without her. Thank you Lord for blessing me beyond measure with an incredible family!

BEST picture ever!!!

These are my three most favorite people in the world and my new favorite picture.

We celebrated Bryan's birthday all weekend...so fun!  My hubby turned 32 yesterday and all he wanted from me for his birthday was a homemade ice cream maker.  HA!  So of course I fulfilled his wish.  We tried it out on Monday night and that ice cream sure was yummy.  I just love celebrating the ones I love on their birthdays.

What's new at the Calvert house?

-The boys are beginning to beg to go outside (ALL THE TIME.)

-The boys are totally into shoes and if they see shoes laying on the floor, they will search feet until they find who needs to be wearing shoes.  So funny!  Here is a quick pic Bryan took on his phone when Jordan insisted on wearing his Daddy's shoes.

-Only two more days of school!!

-Today was our "Ketchup War" at school : 300 fifth graders armed with ketchup bottles to reenact the Civil War.  Totally fun, but totally stinky!

- I'll be starting a new biblestudy this summer - "Stepping Up" by Beth Moore - YAY!

-One of my students gave me 3 mini bundt cakes from "Nothing Bundt Cakes" and they are so heavenly.  I just enjoyed one with a nice cup of coffee...that was the perfect ending to this crazy day.

- Bryan told me today that I needed to "let go of my inner dork."  REALLY?!  Okay, so I have a lot of dorkiness inside...but I choose to embrace it!  What's wrong with that?

A Little Taste of Summer

Last weekend our sunday school class spent the day at a friend's lakehouse.  It was a very nice mini get-away!  The boys loved playing in the water on the porch and running around with their buddy, Carter.  We are so blessed with such a great group of friends at church. 

Then, we came home to visit MeMe and Grandad's house for the evening.  The boys played in the water some more of course!  Can you tell that Nathan LOVES the water?!  He especially loves it on his face...he is such a mess!

Nathan is clapping in this picture with Grandad because the Polaris (pool cleaner thing) just sprayed him in the face.  :)  Thanks to Grandad for being willing to get wet!

This is my serious Jordan.

This is what happens when Daddy plays with the boys.  Always aggravatin' somebody!

If that wasn't enough fun for one weekend, we also got to celebrate Brayden and Bryce's third birthday!  Nathan and Jordan were so excited because it was a Mickey Mouse themed party.  This is Brayden opening up his new Toy Story figures.

Bryce opening up his presents...Bryce and Brayden LOVE Minnie Mouse.  In fact, they asked for a Minnie Mouse party but Emily convinced them that boys have Mickey Mouse parties.  HA!  So, I just had to wrap their gifts in Minnie Mouse bags!!  They loved it!

Nathan and Jordan sporting their Mickey Mouse ears during the party. 

A little funny story from today....Jordan has just learned to say "Mickey Mouse."  This morning when he got to Gram and PaPa's house, they asked him to say "Mickey Mouse."  Jordan said, "Mi-ey Mou." So, they clapped and cheered.  Then, they asked Nathan to say "Mickey Mouse."  And, Nathan said, "Cat."  HA!  Guess we need to keep working on this vocabulary stuff.

Never A Dull Moment

Bryan always takes the boys to his mom's house in the morning before school.  I usually get a quick email to let me know he got there okay and that the boys were happy, sleepy, hungry, what they were eating for breakfast, etc... This is part of the email I got today from Bryan...


"They were funny this morning. Nathan was being a clown. While my mom was pouring his cheerios he kept reaching his hand through the hole in the bag and pulling them out for her. She says he does that all the time. Then he kept trying to pull up her shirt to see her belly and then he untied her pants twice! Then he kept taking his milk and cheerios and putting them on Jordan’s tray. Of course he was laughing the entire time. Jordan did not think it was as funny! Finally mom had to pull Nathan’s chair away from Jordan."

Oh goodness, like I said, never a dull moment.