2010 Year in Review (Part 4)

Ok, so I know I've drug this out long enough.

We're finishing up with our 2010 Year in Review today, regardless.

So, here goes!

In August, we took a family trip to Hilton Head with Oma, Grandma and Grandpa.

It was Chase's first trip to the beach.

He wasn't a big fan of the sand, but he did like to walk down the beach with Mama and Dada, which made for an awfully stunning picture!

And here's the entire family.

And this is just about the only time the two boys sat together.
You should have seen us crazy folks in the background trying to get them to look at the camera.

In September, Charlie started preschool. He was a natural and loved it from day one.
He had no problems being left there on the first day.
In fact, as we all remember, his exact words were "Mama, GO!" Nice.

And then there was this. I don't think I need to say anymore about it.

And moving on to happier times. Chase turned one in October.
Unfortunately, he was sick during his party but the rest of us had fun!

This is was the first parent-inclusive party at preschool.
The kids sang a song to the parents and had decorated their desks with all kinds of adorable things.
We had so much fun watching Charlie in his element.

Soon thereafter, we became members at the local science museum that they built just for Charlie and Chase. Wasn't that nice of them?

And here's Chase at Discovery Place KIDS (the science museum). Isn't he cute?

The first week of December, we headed to the Christmas tree farm to select, what turned out to be, our very own Charlie Brown Christmas tree.

Charlie was absolutely no help. He sat on the tractor the entire time.

Which means that Mike left Chase to pick out our tree.
Suffice it to say, that will never happen again.
Can't blame poor Chase though. He was only 14 months old.

Mike on the other hand...

Next was Charlie's racecar themed birthday party.
Shelby, in particular, really enjoyed herself.

Charlie loved his cupcake.

But mostly, he really loved all of these cars...

Then, we all headed to Bass Pro Shops to meet Santa.
I think Chase has been scarred for life.

(Maybe Santa too.)

Later in the month, Charlie participated in his first school Christmas program.
I'm just happy he wasn't picking his nose in this picture.

(Although, it does appear that he may have been picking something else...)

Right after the Christmas program, we packed up the car and headed to Tennessee.
First we stayed with Grammy.

And then we headed to Grandpa's house.
I think this is all Charlie remembers about the trip.

Meanwhile, Chase actually sat on someone else's lap!
(He also really loved playing with Poppy too.)

And then there was Christmas morning.
I think this picture sums it all up.

Charlie got the biggest surprise, by far, when he opened his present from Grammy & Poppy. It was his very own racecar!

And this was the very first time he actually DROVE his very own racecar.

(I think Mike has some work to do...
...both with Charlie's driving skills and on the neighbors bushes.)

Moving on...

Then, we had SNOW on Christmas Day!

That's when Frosty made his appearance.

So, that's our 2010 Year in Review, in a (four-part) nutshell.
I hope you enjoyed this little walk down memory lane.

I would like to leave you with a couple of things.

First this...

And then this...

Bust mostly, this...

And definitely this...

What an amazing year it's been!
Can't wait to see what 2011 has in store for us.

H A P P Y    N E W    Y E A R!

We Break for Snow!

We're going to take a little break from our 2010 Year in Review - which I must say I have done a very good job dragging out - to showcase pictures of our first snow day in 2011.

And this snow was a big one too! In fact, we're iced in today - ice on top of snow. What fun!

Chase obviously hasn't seen "A Christmas Story." He doesn't know the perils of sticking his tongue out in this cold weather. Stay away from flag poles, buddy!



I think this picture is funny, because that is an honest to God, big snowflake that fell in front of Mike's face, just as I was taking this picture.



Even Charlie is impressed with the snowfall.

Another big snowflake fell just as I was taking this picture. It is precariously placed, wouldn't you say?

Mike and Charlie, getting ready to sled down the hill beside our house.

Leave it to Charlie and Mike to figure out some way for him to ride a big wheel in the snow.

Off they go, into the sunset, riding a big wheel on a sled. Go figure.

2010 Year in Review (Part 3)

We've covered a lot in our Year in Review so far and now, we're heading into summer months. So here we go!

When we last saw Chase, he was just learning to sit up. In May, Chase had another milestone when he first pushed up on all fours. Here's video of that big event. (May 12)

And here he is, only a couple of days later, crawling! (May 15)

Ok, so he's not crawling in this next picture, but it's cute, so I'm putting it on the blog anyway.

And if you want more proof that Chase was on the fast track to toddlerhood, here's video of him STANDING just 4 weeks later! (June 19)

And 4 weeks after that? CRUISING! (July 16)

And 5 weeks after that? WALKING! (July 29) 

Really, Chase. Why do you want to grow up so fast?

Meanwhile, in Charlie's world, he got his very first tractor ride at Grammy and Poppy's house in June. We created a monster that day.

And here's little Chase on that same trip on Tennessee. 

(Just including this picture because it's cute and because I can. It's my blog.)

This is Charlie at Grandma and Grandpa's house. He still talks about that waterfall.

On July 6, we took Chase to get his first haircut. He reacted in typical Chase fashion...

D R A M A! 

Oh, the humanity!

And now he's just trying to milk it. What a pitiful face.

Meanwhile, Charlie's swimming skills really took off in the summer. He's now taking private swim lessons and by this summer, will officially become part fish.

And last but not least (for this post, anyway), Charlie went to his first summer camp. It was Dinosaur Camp at Romp n Roll and he absolutely loved it. (Mama loved it too because that meant she got a couple of hours at home that were just a little less chaotic.)

Stay tuned for the next blog entry when we'll remember our beach trip, preschool, the infamous field trip to Patterson Farm and much, much more!

2010 Year in Review (Part 2)

Our Year in Review will continue in a moment but before we move onto other 2010 milestones, I just had to show one more video of sweet Charlie before he became chatty Charlie...

I'm still amazed at how much he's learned! This video was taken in mid-March and here we are, just 10 months later, and he's talking our ears off! Love it!

Ok, anyway, back to our Year in Review.

______________________________________________________

Chase obviously grew and changed so much this year. You gotta walk before you can crawl, right? Well, in Chase's case, you gotta "push up" first.

And then, you gotta "sit up," right?

Here's video of little Chasie sitting up on his own for the first time!

And I have to include these photos of Chase because they're just too cute!

And then there's Charlie who also had a big year. His first major milestone was moving out of the crib and into the big boy bed!

Here's his last morning in the crib. (Sniff. Sniff.)

And here's Charlie sitting in his big boy bed, right before his first nap.

He did such a great job! He only got up once. I heard him stomping around in his room, so I busted in there and quite literally scared him into staying in his bed until Mama or Dada gets him after his nap. Since then, he's not given us any trouble! He stays in his big boy bed until one of us comes into his room. So proud of him!

Meanwhile, Mama and Dada were SO HAPPY that Charlie moved out of the crib and Chase moved into it, because that meant that we got our bedroom back. YEAH!

I have to include this photo of Charlie because it's quite simply, one of my absolute favorites of him. I just love the lighting in this picture and I love his genuine smile. Adorable!

So, that's Part 2 of our Year in Review. Next time we'll cover crawling, swimming and other summer fun. Stay tuned!

2010 Year in Review (Part 1)

Well, I'm stealing this idea from my friend, Lauren Verlander, but I can't help it. It's a great idea!

In honor of the new year, I'm going to do a "2010 Year in Review" over the next couple of blog entries. (It also helps that there's really nothing spectacular going on in our lives right now, so this will give me material to write about.)

I think you'll really enjoy this because I've uncovered lots of short videos that show how far the boys have come in just 12 months. It's truly amazing.

So, enough chit chatting. Here goes. The 2010 Year in Review, Part 1!

____________________________________________________________________

We started 2010 the same way we ended it... 

...with a Tennessee loss in a Bowl game.

Oh, and SNOW!

Believe it or not, that's Charlie in the picture above.

Here's a picture of Chase from the snow 2 weeks ago.

Eerie, isn't it?!

Anyway, back to our year in review.

Some things stayed the same...

Ahhh... the grocery cart.

And some things have really changed!

You're probably wondering when these videos were made...

February 20, 2010. Less than one year ago. Hasn't Charlie come such a long way? Amazing!

Meanwhile, there's Chase.

Here he is back on February 25, right before he eats cereal for the first time. He still has the million dollar smile. What a sweetie!

And luckily, I have video of it too! So fun!

Well, I think that's enough excitement for one blog post. Next time, we'll cover sitting up (Chase), moving out of the crib (Charlie), and who knows what else.

Stay tuned!

Winter Wonderland

Here are a several videos of our snow day last week. I can only imagine how fun playing in the snow will be as the boys get older!

Video #1: Future Olympic Skier... Chase Arning! 
Ok, based on this video, maybe he won't be an Olympic skier, but you never know! (And yes, I know I spelled skier wrong on the video.)





Video #2: Speechless
I think Charlie is overwhelmed by the cuteness of the Hurley girlies!





Video #3: Mittens: Loathe Entirely
Poor Chase absolutely HATED his mittens. Here's a glimpse...

Christmas Cookie Decorator Extraordinaire

Want baking secrets from the top Christmas cookie maker under the age of 5?

Sprinkles... lots and lots and lots of sprinkles. (Be sure to taste test sprinkles first before applying to cookie.)