Local Economic Stimulus Plan

Well, we had no intention of launching our very own economic stimulus plan, but it appears that we're on the path of doing it anyway! As we've mentioned in the past few weeks, we've ventured out into the market to get new windows and new washer/dryer. We're loving both items, and believe that they both will help to reduce our "carbon footprint" on this earth. We had been planning and saving for these items for quite a while, so pulling the proverbial trigger was no big deal.

Life has a way of bringing unexpected surprises however - doesn't it? Last week, Karis was cooking beans on our stove when the doorbell rang - it was the gentleman coming to fix a small tear in the new screen of our window - and they began to chat about the windows etc. When Karis finally came back in, the beans had completely boiled over - to the point where they had boiled dry - and apparently the steam that was now being created all over the stovetop went into the "brains" of the stove and completely fried it. The stove is finito. We were debating about whether to just try and get a new control panel for the stove, or replace the stove completely. The stove was 13'ish years old, and of course there are some very cool new features out on stoves these days - so we took ourselves over to Sears to look and determine if this was something that we'd want to even pursue. Of course, who can resist looking at new stoves? The funny thing is, that Amy was the one originally convinced to get the new stove, but as Karis discussed the option of just fixing the old one, she began to move to the other side of the fence. However, when we got to the store, Karis was the one who became convinced that the new stove was the way to go - and as he does the majority of the cooking, that was that!

The stove should be here this coming week, so we'll post a picture of our newest household addition. It has two independent ovens, a small one on top and a larger one on bottom. That will be lovely - for the few times a year like holidays where you're cooking a ton of stuff and never have enough room! Hopefully this is the end of our money outflow - please no more unexpected surprises!

Kaleb is mastering the kiss - too sweet. Of course, sometimes kisses leave you completely wet and slobbered all over, and other times there is "tongue" involved (Amy could definitely do without that added feature!), but they are just so precious! He is also continuing to cruise along furniture and is walking further with you holding his hands, so we've got our fingers crossed that he'll walk before we leave in August.

Kaleb finished his swimming lessons this week - so now it'll just be refresher sessions until next year. Zachary is starting formal swimming lessons at RDV where Karis works on Monday - we're hoping that he'll enjoy learning how to truly swim now.

Karis received an annual evaluation in June, and just discovered that he was nominated as one of the "role models" within the therapy department across all of the 7 Florida Hospital campuses - congratulations to Karis - it is just awesome that he could be recognized as one of the stars for his hard work, fantastic skills and great attitude (Hey, a wife has to be proud and brag just a little bit!)

Phrase of the week: "You're cracking me up!" Zachary apparently found Daddy particularly funny one day and this was his response - sounds just like a little grown-up!

The next two photos show a new way to increase the resistance for sit-ups - try having your two boys on your stomach! Karis was quickly groaning with the strain on his muscles! :)

Kaleb cruising along the new washer/dryer to explore them

Zachary exhibiting the float - he is similar apparently to his father - he has difficulty getting all of his body to float - so we've been telling him to show us his toes - so you can see them poking out of the water here

Kaleb showing off his float in full clothes - you can see his hair is getting long as it floats around his head!

Car for two please!? Alas, they didn't really fit in together, but Zachary wanted his brother to ride in his car with him so badly that Amy walked behind holding the door closed enough to keep Kaleb from falling out as his brother gave him a ride.

Zachary playing with a birthday toy (thanks Gram-Z and Papa-Z!) that we recently brought out for his delight - he is now learning that we can't hit anything other than the ball with the bat, and how to hold his hands, swing and watch the ball fly!

Little Sponges

With little kids, it is just amazing to see how quickly they pick up information and learn about the world around them. Zachary's most recent "ah-ha" moments include figuring out how the traffic signals work. He is now very intent as we drive along, telling us what we are supposed to be doing as we approach the traffic signal! He is definitely showing signs of being extremely bossy - we wonder where he got that from?? (perhaps mom? :))

Kaleb is cruising along the couch and getting braver and braver - we're hoping that he'll start walking before we leave next month for Europe.

We're in the "thick of planning" right now with our Europe trip - we're intending to stay in apartments rather than hotels as there are four of us going - so it'll be nice to all be together in one space. There are so many to choose from - it is hard to know if you choose the charming, quaint apartment that might be a short metro right away from the tourist attractions, or whether you stay in an apartment right in the "action" - we'll see! :) We're excited about our trip - it should be very fun although we'll miss the boys a lot!

Phrase of the week: In honor of this week's little sponge moments - "Green means go! Yellow means slow down! Red means stop! I see RED, Mommy!!!" Life with a "traffic cop" in the backseat! :)

Kaleb kissing himself in the mirror (we have a similar one of Zachary at this age!)

Kaleb is getting the hang of sitting on these riding toys - although he hasn't figured out yet how to move around on them!

Happy Independence Day and Happy Canada Day!

Happy Independence Day to our American loved ones, and Happy Canada Day to our Canadian loved ones! Karis' clinic had everyone wear an American-related t-shirt to work yesterday - so he complied with a lovely navy American flag t-shirt, but underneath it he wore a true-blue Canadian flag t-shirt (gotta love Roots!). We are celebrating the fourth by listening to our three year-old declare his independence "NO, I do it! You don't do it!!" Gotta love that independent spirit - even if it takes 5 times as long to do anything! :)

In an effort to make our house more "hurricane-resistant" we ended up going on a journey that led to replacing some of our windows - we've now replaced the windows in the front of our house along with the windows on the side of the house that the boys sleep on. We still have the windows at the back of the house, but those will most likely wait until we save up some more money, as replacing windows is not a cheap endeavor! We've been very pleased so far - we ended up going with a company that sells really good windows - the glass is so strong that you can hit it with a bowling ball and it won't break! They also guarantee that if you replace all of the windows in your house with their windows, that you'll save 40% on your energy consumption - pretty impressive, so we'll see if that is in fact true!

Photo 1 is the original window and then the 2nd shot is the new window

New front window - thankfully everything looks very similar to the original windows - just so much better and more energy efficient!

We also broke down and decided to replace our washer and dryer - the ones that we have had reached the point where the washer leaked (and we couldn't get it fixed despite having a repairman come out and look at it) and the dryer was taking about 2 to 2.5 hours to dry a single load. Needless to say laundry was taking a very long time! So, we're hoping to be tinkled pink with our new appliances!

We're looking forward to getting together with friends on Sunday for a post-July 4th holiday. We hope that you all are having some fun as well!

Phrase of the week: "Bible gideos" - Zachary loves to watch DVDs, and so will request to watch one of his "gideos" - so cute!

Kaleb's first ride with Daddy on the lawnmower, and then Zachary enjoying his usual place with Daddy

First Flight for Kaleb!

We just got back from our vacation up on Stowe, Vermont yesterday. We had a very fun time, and it was Kaleb's first ever flight. With two kids, flying is a much more "engaged" experience than when you have two parents to only one child! But, we managed there and back without too many meltdowns on the plane - even on the way back when half of the plane was AHS colleagues of Amy's - a bit nerve-wracking but the kids did very well.

However, flight times and simply being on vacation did mean that naps were not taken at the usual times or quantity. So, there were various meltdowns throughout the week - of course most of the time in public - that did make for some "humbling" experiences that we're sure to remember. One cute moment was when we were at the AHS Service Awards Banquet and we wanted to stay until Amy's boss received his 25 year service award - right after he received it, Amy told Zachary that it was time to go to bed, to which he replied "I don't WANT to go to bed!!" - of course at that exact moment the room went silent and everyone heard and started to laugh.

Vermont is lovely - very nice weather and the landscape is a lovely green and moderate mountains. We did some sightseeing throughout the week - hitting Ben and Jerry's, the Vermont Teddy Bear Factory, eating some fabulous pizza at Pie-Caso, the "bungee trampoline," the Apple Cider Mill and the Shelburne Museum. We tried to just do quick trips after naps had occurred to keep the crabbiness to a minimum. We enjoyed the cooler weather, and spent time outside on our deck looking at the beautiful scenery or reading.

Our good friend, Randy Grove, came out to Stowe with his Dad (who is an AHS Board member), so we had a great time catching up with him.

Phrase of the Week: There were a couple of cute phrases this week relating to the vacation. The first occurred right before we left when we were trying to drum up some excitement for Zachary and telling him that we were going to Vermont - to which he replied "'Mont is scary, I don't want to go!" - Poor kid, vacationing with parents seemed like a bit of a scary change! He seemed to catch on to the whole vacationing concept, but about halfway through the week he started to tell us that "I want to go to our house" - apparently living in the Stowe Resort grew old for Zachary.

The boys enjoying some reading time. Kaleb won't sit still to listen to us read, but he does enjoy looking at the books.

The view from the top of Mt. Mansfield - kind of a hazy day, so a bit hard to see very far, but it was beautiful what we could see!

The boys' first "motorcycle" ride! and enjoying a tame carousel ride at the Shelburne Museum

Vermont Teddy Bear (aka GIANT Teddy Bears!) and Zachary on the bungee trampoline

Karis enjoying some quiet time on the balcony reading

Lovely views from our balcony at the Stowe Mountain Lodge

A beautiful rainbow behind Kaleb's smiling face

Ben & Jerry's Factory Tour & Having Fun with Uncle Randy

Randy and Karis playing the traditional game of cribbage

The outgoing airport experience - Zachary with his fabulous Thomas Rolling Backpack and Kaleb enjoying his first plane experience!

Our First Dentist Visit!

We had our first dental visit this week - and it was fabulous! We chose a Pediatric dental office, and we couldn't be more pleased. Zachary has a story about Elmo going to the dentist, so he was at least somewhat familiar with the experience. The office has as very cool saltwater fish tank in their lobby, so Zachary was enthralled while waiting.

The only "iffy" moment was when we were called back to the "discussion room" - while waiting, Zachary decided that he didn't want his shoes on, so before Amy realized it, he was barefoot. She put his shoes back on, but then the struggle began - he took them off immediately. At the same time, she saw the dentist coming to the room - and began to cringe as Zachary decided that he was really going to escalate this into a struggle so Zachary laid down flat on the floor as he knows it is harder to get him to "behave" if he is flat on the floor. Luckily, the dentist surprised him a bit when he came into the room, so he stood up! The dentist talked to Amy for a few minutes and then took Zachary back - Amy went to put his shoes on again, which was about to kick off a tantrum when the dentist saved the day and said that it was fine for him to go in barefeet (did we mention how pleased we are with this place!!!?)

Zachary did amazingly well - he wasn't scared to go back by himself (they always take the kids by themselves because they behave better when they're by themselves) and he was so proud when he came out that his teeth were "sparkly". Kaleb had his first "lap exam" in which Amy and the dentist sit knee-to-knee and lay the child down across both laps (dentist is above Kaleb's head) so that he'd have easy access to look into Kaleb's mouth.

Both boys have no cavities, which is a huge relief. As a parent while sitting there for the first time, you worry about the fact that you're sure that you have woefully inadequate brushing habits with your child!

One interesting thing that did come out of the visit was that Zachary has an extra adult tooth in the front between his two front teeth (they found it on the x-ray). Apparently this is not uncommon, so when he's about 6-7 an oral surgeon will go in and take it out in an office visit.

The dentist also told us to "brace" ourselves for braces potentially with both boys. If their teeth are right tight against each other as kids, that is a potential sign that they don't have enough space so when their adult teeth come in, they have over-crowding. Amy had the same issue, so this was not unexpected news.

We're off to Stowe on Monday, which is our first trip with both boys. Kaleb has never been in a plane before, so this is going to be interesting. We're hoping to have great fun, and will give an update on our trip probably in two weeks (unless Amy unexpectedly has time at the hotel to write).

Kaleb is really beginning to become independent - he no longer needs to be within our eyesight to be happy - and he is gaining his "land legs" - it is fun to watch him walking along furniture instead of holding our hand.

Phrase of the week: "'Mommy, your Cheerios are sad. Why Zachary? Because they don't want to be eaten!" We have no idea where he came up with that, but I do imagine that's how the Cheerios would feel if they had thoughts!

The very cool fish tank in the waiting room

Zachary and Dr. Bishop

Zachary getting his x-rays

Zachary and Kaleb taking a ride together

Practicing walking

Snapshot of One and Three Years Old

There wasn't a whole lot of excitement this week, so we thought that it might be nice just to have a general snapshot of what the boys are like at this age.

Kaleb at One:
Kaleb is still taking two naps a day and sleeping through the night from about 7:30P to 6:30A. He is a very good eater (like Zachary) and will eat spinach, kale, acorn and butter squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, broccoli, asparagus and so forth. The only thing that he doesn't seem to really love so much is brussel sprouts, but we'll see as time passes. He seems to be favoring his left hand, so we'll see if we've ended up with a left handed child in our family! He adores his big brother, except for when Zachary gets a little too vigorous with him, after which Kaleb has already discovered that if he starts to cry Mommy or Daddy come running to save him, so we'll need to watch that carefully! :) He is still crawling in his own unique way with the one leg straight out to the side, and has been standing to walk along furniture etc. He is doing well so far in swimming lessons, but doesn't seem to be figuring out how to turn all of the way over to float (kind of important! :)) Kaleb remains such a great spirit with this wonderful, infectious laugh that you can hear throughout the house.

Zachary at Three:Zachary is still our little reader - he does so love his books. At three, it seems that we've now graduated from our love of Elmo to the love of Thomas the Tankerit (don't ask us where "Tankerit" came from, but he refuses to just say Thomas the Tank Engine!). He loves to "drive" the van and can play in there for hours. He also loves his "music" as we're driving in the car. Zachary's life is one of many "loves" as he always has a love affair going on with ants currently, and with helping Daddy cook. Not to be forgotten is the passion for tractors - whenever we see construction vehicles he just goes crazy yelling and gasping "There's a digger, there a HUGE tractor, there's a crane!!!!" He is fiercely independent right now, and wants to do everything himself. He is still napping once in the afternoon, and sleeps from about 8:15'ish to 6:00A although we're still working on the "morning begins at 6:30" routine to keep him in bed for just a little longer! Zachary is a very good eater as well, and we're currently trying to work on table manners - all the way from talking with a normal voice instead of a shout, to eating with our utensils. He has learned how to say "May I be excused, please" so nicely at the table and he insists on saying the blessing on the food, regardless of whether we're at home or at someone else's house. We're still experiencing lots of mischief in this little boy, and he has his moments of temper tantrums, but he is just so precious that you just can't remain frustrated for too long!

Other than our little snapshot in time (we know the time will pass too quickly and that memories will fade, so hopefully this will help us remember our two little munchkins at this age!), life has been blessedly quiet for the last week. We're looking forward to going to Stowe, Vermont in just over a week, so we'll be packing and getting ready for that.

Phrase of the week: "No, I like my lotta, lotta hair!" Blake and Zachary often get so dirty playing in the mornings that Jennifer has to give them both a bath in order to uncover them again. Bruce (Jennifer's husband) is a teacher, so he's now on summer vacation and he got the joys of bathing the boys this week - after which he came out and said to Jennifer "Have you ever washed Zachary's hair??? There is so much of it that it is hard to get all of the sand out!" Jennifer started to laugh and said to Zachary "Yes, you have lots of hair - maybe you could share some with Mr. Bruce" (who is like Karis in the hair department)....to which Zachary responded with the phrase above - sorry Bruce! :)

Fantastic bubble blower thanks to Jeff & Niesha kept the boys enthralled!

The t-shirt says: "50% American, 50% Canadian & 100% Me!"

Enjoying some parallel swinging fun!

Ah, a fleeting moment of harmonious living!

The joys of reading while taking a moment

Mrs Limp-A-Lot

The weekend started off with a "smash" when Amy decided that it would be "fun" to kick the end of our bed trying to take one Mr. Zachary back to his room after the 5A wakeup call for some unknown ailment. We're still not sure if she broke her little toe or just sprained it, but she has been definitely hobbling around all week. She even had to resort to wearing really unattractive flat shoes all week even when she was wearing skirts - but, comfort needed to win out over vanity!

Kaleb is finally deciding to get some more teeth - it appears that two more top teeth are coming in at the same time, so he's been a little "off" this week - nose running off and on, very sleepy, and in general a little crabbier than normal.

Zachary has mastered counting to 10 - he's been off and on doing his numbers, but there were times that he'd revert back to skipping a number, or numbers! But all of a sudden this week he can rattle off his numbers up to 10 without any hesitation - very cool!

Karis has started his new school term as the lab assistant, and is enjoying it again.

For their birthdays, we had Tim Putt take professional pictures of them - they turned out really great - we've included a few below.

Phrase of the week: "Little mine" - this is code for "This Little Light of Mine" - Zachary's favorite nighttime song for us to sing. Kaleb's seems to be the good old standby - "When You're Happy and You Know It" - the clapping holds special appeal with this song! Zachary is awfully cute holding up his little finger singing the song, and pretending to "blow" it out!

Kaleb was crabby, so Amy was playing with him, trying to get his mood to improve, and Tim caught this cute picture

Zachary looks like he just loves his little brother in this picture (which he does most of the time!)

More brotherly love! At least they seem to entertain each other well!