Our Morning with Tessa and Nate

A couple of weeks ago I called Krista and asked her if I could steal Tessa for a morning. Aubrin talks about Tessa all the time at home and is always asking to play with her. The girls do see each other often at family events, but it's always so busy and so many people. I thought it would be fun for the girls to have a quiet morning for just them. When I got to Krista's house today to pick up Tessa, Jackson wanted Nate to come over and play too! A little boy time for Jackson would be good as well. So we all jumped in the car and headed back to our house.
Tessa and Aubrin decided they wanted to play in the sandbox and jump in the bouncy. They bounced for a bit and then would blow bubbles. Then I would hear, "Come on, lets go", and they would follow each other to what they wanted to do next. It was so fun watching the girls play together. Although they are cousins, I see a beautiful little friendship growing between the girls.

Nate and Jackson spent their time on the water slide. They decided to create their own version of the show Wipeout. They made up their own obstacle course and cheered each other on. Nate's a couple years older than Jackson, but he is really patient with him and tries to teach him new things. Jackson loved that he got to play with Nate today. As Jackson would say, "Nate is my buddy. One day I will be big like Nate." We hope to play again soon!

Aubrin's First Tigers Game

Today we took Aubrin to her first Tigers game. Jackson has been to many, but we finally decided that Aubrin was old enough to join us. We all got into our Tiger gear and we were off. It was such a hot day. I made sure to pack a lot of water to keep us all cool. When we first got to the stadium Aubrin was a bit overwhelmed with all the people, noises and CLOWNS!!! It was circus day at the stadium.
She was looking all around, but still holding on very tight. Jackson thought it was great! Once we got down to our seats Aubrin got more comfortable. She was cheering for the players and dancing when the music came on. The give away for circus day was red noses. We didn't get there in time to get the noses, but the man in front of us gave each of the kids one. Again, Jackson thought it was great, and Aubrin was a bit unsure. Aubrin was on a mission to figure out how to get peanuts out of the shell. She was so proud when she did. After a few innings we went on the carousel and walked around. Just as we were getting ready to leave it started raining. Aubrin did great for it being her first game. I can't wait to do it again!

We Found A Beach....

On Sunday Todd and I celebrated out 7 year anniversary. A great 7 years it has been. We decided to spend the day as a family instead of just the two of us going out. Todd remembered a few of our friends in the neighborhood saying there was a lake near our house that we could walk to. Hmmm, how have we lived in our house for 5 years and not known about this? So we packed up the car and set out to find the beach. Sure enough the entrance to the beach was about a mile from our house if we walked. Driving we had to go around and it took a few minutes longer, but not much. When we got to the beach we were the only ones there. It was perfect. We made sand castles, played in the water and looked for special rocks to add to Jackson and Aubrin's collection. Just as we were packing up to leave more people started to come. It was a nice quiet way for the four of us to spend the morning.

A Morning Out On The Course

Last week Jackson woke up and asked Todd if they could go golfing. Todd always takes the kids to the green across the street to putt in the evenings.
That was not what Jackson had in mind. He asked Todd if they could get a golf cart and ride around the course and play. The course wasn't busy yet, so Todd and Jackson threw on some clothes and they were out the door with their clubs. Jackson was so excited to play like a "real golfer." They played 6 holes. Todd said Jackson was a great listener.
Of course Todd didn't take the camera with him, so I was happy when I saw them pull up on the 18th tee (behind the house), and I could snap a few pictures.
The perks of living on the course and knowing the guys that work on the course is you get to sit on the machines. This is a super perk when you are three! Just as Jackson and Todd were finishing up, our friend Mr. Roy pulled up on one of the mowers and of course Jackson had to hop on.
Jackson is excited to go out again with daddy!

New player in the house...

Over the past couple of weeks Aubrin has started to take more interest in baseball. She even has her own princess ball and bat. The other day Todd and the kids had a baseball game going in the backyard. Jackson would be the catcher when Aubrin was up to bat and then Aubrin would be the catcher when Jackson was up to bat. Todd was showing Aubrin the correct way to hold her hands on the bat. Each time she was up to bat she would say, "Daddy, like this?" I think that moment was melting Todd's heart. Now Aubrin joins in on our evening baseball games. Each time she bats she says, "I going to hit a bomb." I think she has been listening to her big brother talk.

Jackson and Grandpa

Jackson loves to be helpful. If there is a project going on in our house Jackson is there with his tools and ready to help. Over the past couple of months my dad has been helping Todd and I do a few things around the house. Todd is very handy, but with his schedule this summer it's difficult to get projects done. Earlier this summer my dad, Todd and Jackson put in a flower box on the side of the house. Jackson would help grandpa put glue on the bricks and then use his special hammer to make sure they were on tight. This project took my dad a couple hours longer, but he loved having his little buddy helping.





With getting the house painted this summer, this has led to many more projects around the house. My dad came over last week to change light fixtures and help hang our new cabinets in our office. Sure enough, Jackson had his tools ready and waiting for grandpa to come over and get started. Jackson was eager to help grandpa cut the drywall for the new lights. Although, once he realized how messy it was he settled for helping screw the new bulbs in and turning on the switch to make sure they worked. Jackson thought it was pretty great that he was able to climb on the ladder. Thanks grandpa for all your hard work!

Going to the Movies

On Monday we took Jackson to the movie theater for the first time. Jackson loves the Toy Story movies so we knew that going to see Toy Story 3 would be a great treat. For the past month the coming attractions to the movie have been on TV. Every time they come on Jackson tells us that he didn't remember those parts from the other movies. He thought if it was a new movie why didn't we have it at our house. We explained that it was a new movie at the movie theater, but he just didn't have a concept of what that meant. We decided not to bring Aubrin with us. She enjoys watching movies, but while busy doing other things. She likes pushing her babies around or doing a puzzle and every so often looking up at the TV to see whats going on. So we thought we should wait a bit longer for her first movie. For Jackson's birthday our friend Michele gave him a Toy Story t-shirt. He was excited to wear it. Once we got to the movies Jackson walked up to the ticket window and said, "I'm here to see Buzz and Woody. It's my first time here.!" It was priceless.

We got popcorn and in we went. When the lights went down and the movie started, Jackson couldn't help but smile. He was so excited. Jackson ate his popcorn and asked Todd if he could go "Make him some more." Jackson also had to go to the bathroom during the movie and didn't understand why we couldn't pause it while he was gone. He sat through the movie like a champ and loved it. On the way home he talked about his favorite parts and asked his famous question he always asks, "Next time, can we please bring Aubrin?"