Feeling Glad

Here was one precious, funny moment with Davis as I was putting him to bed last night.

Mommy: "Davis, what is one thing that you are glad God has given you?"

Davis: "My head"

Mommy: "Why?"

Davis: "I don't know"

Mommy: "Well, I'm glad God gave me my head so that I can have eyes to see and a nose to smell and a mouth to taste things."

Davis (emphatically): "And a mouth to TALK, thats why I'm glad I have a head"

Mommy (laughing): "You sure love to talk don't you?"

Davis: "Yes!!!"

And he SO SO does. Sometimes too much for his own good, but he is following in his Mommy's footsteps. I was nicknamed motor mouth by my first grade teacher and my mom says that common words out of her mouth when I was a child were "if you'd only keep your mouth shut, Ellen, you wouldn't get in trouble!" Oh Davis, this talking will probably be a blessing sometimes and sometimes, not so much!

Happy 3rd Birthday Davis!

Our little guy is three today. How did this happen so fast?!! It feels like just yesterday that he was born. Everyone says it will go by quickly and they are right.


Here are some of the things you've loved over the past year


#1. Trains. You are obsessed with anything train. When asked "do you like oranges?" you'll often reply with, "no, I like trains." Your favorite trains are ones with faces. Often when we see trains you think it is a little bit strange that they don't have faces like Thomas and Percy.


#2. You are potty trained! Mommy spent a weekend doing "Potty Training in Less then a Day" with you and it worked after a few days. No more diapers!!!


#3. You have gone from just a few word sentences to now you can say pretty much everything. I love it when you repeat a word and ask us what it is. -- you love to learn.


#4. You still love to read. You love it with us, you love to do it alone. You still love going to the library for storytime and to see Miss Maggie. One thing that has been added is that you love to go to the computer while we are there and "play the games"

#5. You really enjoy riding your tricycle and have persevered to be able to ride it all the way to the other side of the neighborhood. It has been a big deal for you to begin to be able to pedal up hills.

#6. You've begun to develop friendships with other kids. You come home telling us who you enjoyed playing with and were able to share who you wanted invited to your birthday party. I love seeing you be a good friend!


#7. You still love pup pup so much . Your little blue and white doggy still sleeps with you every night while you suck your thumb.

#8. You are a wonderful big brother. You are learning to share with Isaac and becoming pretty good at it! Of course you have your moments of frustration with him, but we are so hopeful for ya'll to be great friends. The other day you said he is your best friend -- Daddy and I hope that will be very true through your life!

We love you so very much and are very proud of you! Happy Birthday!!

Pictures will follow but here are the links from your birth, 1st birthday and 2nd birthday!

Davis's 3rd Birthday Party!

To say that Davis loves trains is an understatement! If you ask him "do you like bananas?" his answer often will be, "no, I like trains." We've tried to explain that you can like more then one thing, but he has an obsession -- and we don't mind it!

Davis, on our way to his birthday party, showing two of his absolute favorite trains, Thomas and Percy. He loves to "chug!"

We had Davis's party in the birthday caboose at the Huntsville train depot. It was the perfect place for our little guys party, though it was very chilly outside and just a little bit crowded in the caboose. I think the kids had a good time, though as the mommy I think I spent a bit of time hoping that everyone was doing ok!!

The crowded caboose. :) Note, my mom is hard at work, it would have been a lot harder without my parents helping at every turn. And, these pictures -- well, my sister was the official photographer, which was a great thing or we may not have many pictures!

Davis's accessory that he has really wanted is a Useful Engine Shed. (this is where Thomas can sleep) so he was excited to receive it! Many trains have slept in it in the last few days. :)


Thank you Aunt Annie, Uncle Will, Mom and Dad for coming!!! It was such a special time!

As for the cake. I looked up a very video on you tube on how to make a train cake. They made it look so easy! It wasn't quite as easy as they made it out to be, but with help from my good friend Miki it turned out pretty cute. I'd definitely do it again as it was a lot of fun to create! (I may never be able to look at icing though without my stomach churning as it has 4 pounds of sugar and 4 sticks of butter.

Happy Birthday Davis! I'll do a more official post on his actual birthday, but here is his celebration with all of his little buddies! Happy Birthday our precious Davis!!

Let It Snow!

Last Saturday we received a special present when we woke up -- snow!! Last year, when it snowed we handled it differently because I was so determined to make a snow man. What else is the point of this little bit of snow?! We realized afterwards that we didn't really let Davis "enjoy" the snow since we were so intent on building the snowman. This year we actually played in it and didn't worry about scrounging up the tiny bit of snow that was on the ground to make a little snowman.

This sled is one of the sleds my Dad used to ride when he was a kid. Mom gave me them last year and I used them as decorations on our front porch. Well, this year when there was snow on the ground Davis and I thought we should put them to good use! So we gave it a try and the snow on the ground was just enough for us to glide through for a little while!

Scruffy. Party Animal.

Really, this is just another "watch our cute boys" video.

Christmas Begins!

I took the kids to Target today for some pictures. I think they turned out pretty well, though we had a hard time getting Isaac to smile. Davis was very well behaved and full of expression. (the bribery of getting a cookie afterward works wonders!) I only picked one to print, but had the rest emailed to me so that I could at least keep them in some way!

Precious Brothers.

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P.S. Thanks Grandma for the train sweaters and pants. We think they are really cool.

Love, Davis & Isaac

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And for tomorrow: Breakfast with Santa! (much overdue!)

Thanks Friends!

I'm thankful that I have friends who take pictures of my kiddos even when I don't! Here Davis and Isaac area dressed up! Enjoy!

Our little monkey

Our little orange tiger. :)

Pumpkin Time!

A couple of Saturdays ago we carved our pumpkin for the season! Neither of the boys wanted anything to do with the goop in the middle of the pumpkin, so I was pretty much the creator of "Fred" (named by Davis)

Oh! And if anyone is interested in a book that brings a non Halloween twist to carving pumpkins, you may want to check out The Pumpkin Patch Parable by Liz Curtis Higgs. Davis especially enjoyed it and it relates carving a pumpkin to how God changes (cleans us out) to make us shine like light in the world.

We did dress up but unfortunately I don't have any pictures! Davis wanted to be an orange tiger so he was Tigger. I told him he had to bounce for people in order for them to give him candy, which was really cute. Isaac was a monkey, equally as adorable. :)

War Eagle!

The other day we realized Davis knew all the words to the Auburn fight song. That same day, he sang it over and over again. :) Here is our cutie! WAR EAGLE!!

Davis & Hannah

While I was away and Dan was at work, Davis was with some great friends of ours from our church. Miki and I often get our kids together because we enjoy each others company, but also our kids are so close in age! Hannah is a month older then Davis and their little boy, Jonathan, is only a month older then Isaac! So perfect! Davis had an absolutely fabulous time.

Miki just sent me these pictures so I had to share. Aren't they adorable!!!

When Miki put them down for a nap in Hannah's room it was pretty quiet. She checked on them a few minutes into naptime to find this creative artistry! It is our version of Where's Waldo, with Where's Davis?!

Can't Sleep

I am beside myself with anticipation for this weekend. For over a year, this reunion has been planned for my best friends from high school to go to the beach for 4 days. No kids. No husbands. AND those days begin tomorrow for me!! I can hardly believe it and I don't really know what to do. I have never been away since Davis has been born without kids or Dan, so this is a first in the last 33 months! Well, I can't sleep, so I am going to post a few cute pics of the boys from a couple of days ago!

Isaac's 2nd finger painting experience! This one he was able to "get into" a bit more then a couple weeks ago. (after he realized it wasn't food and it wasn't supposed to go in his mouth...) Ha!

Isaac holds his hands out like this whenever he wants to be picked up. It is one of my favorite and most adorable things that he does. As you can see he was covered from head to toe in paint, I think a bit even was captured in the roof of his mouth. :)When we went to the shoe store with Mom to buy Isaac's 1st shoes, Davis spotted Thomas boots, Thomas umbrellas, and this Thomas raincoat. (they know toddlers well!) Sweet Grandma ended up getting Davis this most adorable raincoat. I wished I had let him go out and really play in the rain. But after the fact had to be good enough this time!

And... what will my boys be up to this weekend? Well Dan and Davis will be having lots of manly adventures, and Isaac is headed to spend a special weekend with Grandma and Gramps! Both are going to have undivided attention! I'm excited for them!!

Rosie

We have a new dog in town. Actually, my parents are on vacation so Scruffy has the honor of having his Aunt? Cousin? Rosie come visit. It has been really fun for all of us and she is a really sweet girl. As we speak, her parents are cruising across the Atlantic from London to Boston after visiting my Uncle Tommy in Ireland. I can't wait to see their pictures, but for now I'll just show you a few of ours!

Rosie has become quite accustomed to our fenced in backyard. She loves to run around with or without us, dig, and just stare at our neighbors barking dogs. She really has been so polite with them because they just bark and bark and she just looks at them with the most innocent little face, as if asking... why?

Here is the current favorite area of play for our boys. Rosie's cage! Davis absolutely loves to dance and sing on top of it and Isaac cannot get enough of opening and closing the door. We may not give it back!! And, excuse the underwear pic of Davis... we were in the midst of special times at our house that I have promised not to post details about. But, I guess it would be alright to give you 5 words though.... dry the past three nights!!!!!!!!Rosie spends a lot of time here, locked at the top of the stairs. She just lays on the stairs when we are not with her downstairs. This has prevented her smelling where Scruffy has "made mistakes" before, in hopes that she won't have any at our house. She has been such a good girl. Isn't she cute. :)

Best Friends Forever.

Oh, and Rosie wanted to add a little message: "Woof, woof, lick, lick, I miss you Mommy and Daddy, but I'm having doing great and having so much fun with Scruffy!!!"

I'm Gonna Miss This

The other day at concert in the park, which has become a Thursday summer tradition for our family, I had a nostalgic moment that reoccurs in my thought life about the kids growing up.

For this particular example: The music was playing; I was dancing with Davis; Dan was playing with Isaac, and we were surrounded by many different people, many of them grandparent age and older. Those older folks usually smile at us. I imagine them thinking and reminiscing "remember when little jimmy was that age, wow he grew up so fast." It always plays in my mind like that instead of imagining them saying "remember when jimmy was that age, I'm so glad it is over!" Then I get teary imagining Dan and I being older and Davis and Isaac not being with us anymore. (Dan says we'll be out traveling the world, so I don't need to worry because life will be so exciting I won't have time to be sad.) :)

For me, our boys are growing up so fast and they are only 2 1/2 and 1. I often get teary thinking about them growing up and leaving us, or even just not needing and wanting the hugs every moment, or Davis not giving me his "machine gun" kisses before bed, or calling from his room in the middle of the night "mommy, I need my covers on." Sometimes I think I am being selfish, I mean, wishing my kids would never grow up?! Mourning them leaving the house when they are just toddlers now?! I must be a weirdo!!!

I know I have to be careful to enjoy each and every stage and moment. There are the hours and days when I want to pull my hair out because of not having time for me, a temper tantrum, or a really needy baby. But, even in those moments I am trying to just slow down, realize that this is only a moment, and that while I will enjoy the next season, there will be things that I will miss in this current season.... definitely even the needy baby who wants his mommy just about every moment.

I love our boys so much and it is a joy to watch them grow up. There hearts are so moldable and precious. It'll be awesome to see what God has in store for them when they do one day "leave our home." Had to move this pic to this post!

Davis's Sense of Fashion.

He loved plaid this day. I had come to him with 2 outfits, one had a plaid shirt and one had plaid shorts. Well, the separate outfits didn't work for him, he wanted to match them himself. :)

Enough said.

Backyard Fun!

Getting ideas from friends blogs could be a theme of our last couple of weeks. :) Last Sunday we decided it would be fun to put the slide from our playset into our little pool. (thanks Kami!) Isaac had an absolute blast, but Davis didn't get into it quite as much. He enjoyed the tire swing that Dan hung that day much more! Oh! And one piece of advice: the little plastic slide is not made for adults. :) After Dan and I slid down it, it needed a little repair!

Kiddie Carnival!

Over the next few days I am going to try to play catch up on life's activities! I really don't have any excuse other then blogging has not been a huge priority lately!! A couple weeks ago we headed to the Athens Kiddie carnival, to let Davis ride is first rides after reading my friend's blog. (thank you Kimberly!!!) It will definitely be a family tradition until the kids are at least 4. It was amazing that all of the rides were geared towards about 2 years until about 4 or 5! What a wonderful idea!!!

All Davis wanted to know before we arrived was whether they had a train or not. Well, here he is on the little kiddie train that he LOVED! For the first few times around the track Davis kept his hands over his ears, as you can see by the picture, he soon became used to it!

Rocket ships! Davis did hang on to the sides for most of this ride until he learned from some other kids what he was supposed to be doing with that item in front of him. :)


That is my "baby!" At the highest point on the ferris wheel he was probably about 30 feet in the air. Each time they would stop to reload the swings, they would shake so much! I think this mommy was more nervous then the kids!!

Next year Isaac! He was almost big enough for some of the rides, but other then riding the carousel he just enjoyed cheering his brother on.

Davis Plays the Trumpet

When Ellen was in marching band, she accumulated some old instruments that she wanted to someday try. Davis has now become interested in the trumpet.

(I shot this on my camera-phone, so some of the audio is hard to hear, therefore...for the very first time...we have SUBTITLES!)

Just call me (Miles) Davis.

Rockets and Cream

Huntsville, Alabama is famous for training all of the American astronauts in their space and rocket center. (that was pretty much all I knew about this town before we moved here!) This past year we've had a membership and have taken advantage of it on several occassions! Saturday, they had an even called Rocket and Cream in which families could come, the kids could build a rocket, shoot it off and then celebrate with some yummy icecream. Our whole family was going to head out, but unfortunately Dan ended up getting sick so he wasn't able to come. Davis was already so excited that I could not disappoint him on this one, so being the crazy mother that I am, I took my boys out to do it during afternoon naptime. :)

I helped Davis build this rocket which would later get an engine put in it! I didn't realize how high tech it would be, I guess I just figured we'd make toilet paper roll rockets or something?!

One of Davis's favorite parts was riding on the bus to the field where we shot off the rockets. No carseat, no seatbelts, he really felt like it was such a treat! And, the staff was AMAZING. Picture me: 2 babies and a big double stroller, during naptime. Davis was definately one of the youngest rocket scientists. :) Several people saw I needed help and just found ways to assist me. I later found out that the main lady who had been helping me was the director of the center. If they ever need some references to how wonderful they are, I could GLOW about them all.

Aaah. Icecream. I'm so glad Mommy's were able to participate in the icecream sundaes also. As for Isaac... he enjoyed his applesauce. :) We assured him that someday he could share in our treat.

Below is a short video of Davis's rocket being shot off. These counselors helping him were just a small example of the kindness we recieved! He was able to push the button that sent his rocket flying at least a couple hundred feet in the air. Not every 2 1/2 year old gets to do that!

All in all, the boys did great, they both fell asleep on the way home, but then I was able to put them to bed for some good naps late in the afternoon. They were superstars!

Roomtime

Each day Davis has some roomtime. It is basically time for him to play alone in his room for awhile and for me to take a shower, or get some chores done around the house. We set a timer and he knows he needs to stay in his room and play. Well, when I went to get him from his room yesterday, this is what I found:

This is our first time he has even tried to color on the wall, but needless to say, he now knows that he is not allowed to do it. Thank you Crayola for washable markers!! It was so easy to get off the wall. :)

Sister Time!

For the past couple months, Anne and I had been planning for some sister time, which happened this past weekend! Even living just a couple hours apart, it is hard to get together unless it is planned out far in advance. Life gets busy fast!

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Anne has taken up the hobby of sewing adorable little baby/toddler clothes! She made Davis's first birthday outfit and also a couple others for the boys. So, we decided we'd make the boys matching outfits as our project for the weekend.

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Friday we headed to Hobby Lobby to pick out fabric and get started. It was so much fun! I don't think I have the time right now to pick it up as a hobby, but maybe when the kiddos are a little bit older I'll follow in my sister's footsteps!

Davis and Isaac loved having Aunt Annie around, and they both helped out in their own ways. They were both fascinated by the sewing machine and watching the needle go up and down.
Here Isaac is in an outfit Anne made. Davis has a blue striped outfit just like it, so they are now ready for the 4th of July!

It is very hard to get these monkeys to sit still for pictures these days! Here are the finished products of their adorable outfits!
Thanks for coming to visit and for teaching me, Anne!

This Kid TOTALLY Understands Me

Happy Easter! (official)

He is Risen!
Easter morning we had a great time looking for eggs. We've tried pretty hard to limit candy for Davis, so instead of candy in the eggs we hid little people animals inside of the eggs around the house. Davis had a blast looking for them.

Checking out his eggs.

Even though it was "just" us for Easter, I decided that I wanted to make a special meal. For the first time, I roasted a rack of lamb. It tasted really good, so I had to post a pic of my accomplishment. :)

After lunch we headed outside to plant some flowers in my little garden next to the playset. Davis and Dan were a big help in breaking up the ground. As you can see Davis really got into it!

And our precious Isaac, always the proud encourager. We assured him that next year he'd be right out there with the rest of us!

Well, I guess that just about concludes our Easter celebrations!

Easter 2009 Part 1

I am a little behind on all the fun we've had this week, but am going to try to catch up!

It has been a wonderful week, full of lots of friends and activities!

Monday started off with my good friend, Hollie and her kids coming to visit. Hollie and I were roommates for 3 years at Auburn and she happens to live in Huntsville! We wish we lived closer to them, as we are still about a 30 minute drive from their house. Thankfully, we do see each other every once in awhile!

We decorated Easter Eggs together.

Here Jonah and Davis are showing off their creations. I love both of their big smiles! While Hollie was here she taught me a trick. Instead of asking the kids to "smile" for the picture, she has her kids "laugh." This made such a difference and we captured more of the real happiness on their faces!

Rock Wall Climbing

This past weekend Dan and I worked on our wonderful playset a little bit more! I painted, and Dan attached the rocks for the rock wall! As you can see, Davis is having a blast climbing, now we just need some friends to come over and play on it with us! Thank you Gramps, it is the perfect incline!

The First Night

Well, I didn't sleep well, but Davis sure did! (yippee!) I did go to him one time because he had lost Pup Pup, but that took less then 5 minutes! In the morning we had cause for celebration!Dan and I waited not so patiently by the monitor for Davis to let us know he was ready to get up. No other morning would we wish for our children to be up early! Finally, since we knew he was awake, we went to congratulate him before Dan left for work, and he announced with a big smile, "I'm done sleeping! Get up, please!" What an obedient little boy.

In celebration, we had one of Davis's favorite fruits and ate orange (colored, not flavored) pancakes. Davis's favorite color is orange and he loves pancakes, so this has become a family favorite.

Even Isaac tried pancakes for the first time. Yum!
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As for the rest of today, we took down his crib and rearranged his room. No going back now!

Big Boy Bed

I just put my baby in a "big boy bed" tonight. I really have to admit that I just about wanted to cry as I left the room and began to listen and watch him on our monitor. He is over 2 years old and was very excited to sleep in it tonight, so I guess this is just one of the momentous occasions of growing up that I should celebrate and not mourn!!

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He actually has had a twin size bed in his room for a few weeks, which we had planned to move him into, but he really hadn't had any interest in leaving his crib, until we made this purchase today at the local kids consignment sale. (love bargains!) It is more his size, fits his "rocket" sheets (which he loves) and just seems to be the right transition bed for a little toddler.

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I told Davis that part of moving into a toddler bed was giving his "turtle" (musical little toy that attaches to the crib) to Isaac for his crib. He did and and he even showed Isaac how to play with it. Adorable. Great big brother. As I put Davis to bed, I caved and said, "if you want turtle for another night I'll put him on for you." to which he replied. "I gave to Isaac. Isaac borrow now." He didn't even need it. Then I left him in his silent room... what a big, precious little boy.

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He is so proud, and we are so proud too!

Davis and Pup Pup ready for their first night out of the crib.

This is what we hope won't happen in the middle of the night!! He has been instructed to say "get up please" in the morning when it is light outside. We'll see. :)

Snowstorm 2009

I'm originally from Rochester, NY so when I hear that snow is headed our way I get really excited! I know that it won't be the amount of snow that I remember as a kid, but I still know that there will be some time for fun if it will actually stick! Yesterday, we awoke to a little bit of snow on the ground, so we decided to go out and play before heading to church. It was Davis's first snow to play in because last year he was sick the one time that it snowed, so he wasn't able to take advantage of the fun!

How could we play in the snow without making a snowman? Dan was the winner in the snowman contest. Davis kept wanting to break the parts of the snowman I was making. :) We assured him that next year he'd probably be more into making the snowman, but it will be Isaac's turn to want to break the different parts. :) :)

Our snowman masterpiece. I think it took most of the snow in our front yard to creat Mr. Snowman.

Little Birdy footprints in the snow. We had these in several places around our yard. Apparently, the birds were also out playing in the snow!

As you can see on our gate, total snow accumulation of under an inch. By the time we were home from church, Mr. Snowman was tipped over and all of the snow in our yard was gone. We put Mr. Snowman back up and he continued to thrive for a few more hours!

As for Isaac, he was busy taking a nap while we played outside. :)

Our little puppy

Davis loves to wear his shirts or pants on his head and pretend he is a puppy. We think he makes just about the cutest puppy ever.

Woof! Woof!After some hard work as a puppy, Davis relaxed with Isaac.

Davis and his ABC's!

Davis has learned his ABC's and we are so proud. :) Though, after this performance at breakfast, we think he may become a song arranger or a drummer when he grows up.

Big Boy Bed

Yesterday, Davis kept talking and talking about sleeping in a big boy bed. We've talked about moving him out of a crib, and he probably is ready, but I know that we also have to be ready to have him with the freedom to get out of bed. Not just that, we have to be ready to enforce the rule of not getting out of bed until we say so.

Well, Davis's future big boy bed is the daybed/guest bed in Isaac's room, so everytime he would talk about a big boy bed I would let him know that he'd have to wait to go and lay on it until Isaac wakes up. When Isaac did wake up, I was feeding him downstairs and Davis let me know he wanted to go and lay in the big boy bed. I assumed he meant go and lay in Isaac's room, so no problem there. A few minutes later, Isaac and I arrive upstairs to find Davis resting on his "big boy bed."

He had pulled the safety rail out of the closet and was relaxing with Pup pup on it!! It was so funny!

Davis's Photo Essay: "My Room"

Davis recently was given supervised access to our digital camera, and he took some pretty good pictures. Here's life through the lens of a 2 year-old toddler.

Blue Song

Over the Christmas break, Davis and I got accustomed to doing his bedtime routine together. This story starts during one of those nights, right after we had read his books. I started to sing to him "Hey Davis", which is adapted from the song "Hey Baby" (popularized by the AU Marching Band).

Me: "Hey...hey...Davis...I want to know...if you'll be my boy..."

Davis: "Daddy, sing 'blue song'."

Me: "Uhhh...Daddy doesn't know the blue song."

Davis: "Sing 'blue song', please."

Me: (a little worried that not singing the right 'blue song' might hinder the bedtime routine) "Can you sing it for me?"

Davis: "Daddy sing it."

Me: (wondering if he heard it on a CD, at the library, in Sunday School, at MOPS, or anywhere in between, and now EVERYONE knows the Blue Song but daddy. So, after a frantic moment, I sang the first 'blue song' that popped into my head...)

"BLUE...MOON...I saw you standing alone..."

Davis: (sticks his thumb in his mouth, leans back, closes his eyes, and has this look on his face that says: "Ah, yes...the Blue Song. Just as I remembered it--very nice. Now I can go night-night in peace.")


So if you are ever at our house at bedtime, and you hear me singing "Blue Moon" to my eldest son, you'll know why.

Happy 2nd Birthday Davis

Over the last 2 years Davis has brought so much joy to our family. Dan and I have been reminiscing about some of our many, many favorite memories and events/milestones that have happened in Davis's life over the last 12 months. Here are a few!

1. Davis began to walk! Now he is running, chasing and jumping

2. Davis has become quite the conversationalist. He went from only saying "mama and dada" and from "quack quack" being anything that he saw in the air, to now he is saying 4 word sentences and can count to ten! Two of my favorite phrases include "Mommy hold you" and "Chase you"... In both he means "me" instead of "you." He also loves to wave and say "hi daddy" "hi mommy" "hi grandma" without being prompted. SO cute!

3. He has become such a big boy in how he interacts with people. When you see him he might ask you for a "high five," "big ten," "knuckles," "double knuckles," "fist bump," or "thumbs up." These actions are thanks to some of our neighborhood boys who spend time with him, even though he is many years younger then them.

4. Some of Davis's favorite things to do over the last year have been to swim, read, toss and throw balls, have pictures and movies taken of him, draw, dance to music, go to library story time and see "Miss Maggie," and get cookies at the grocery store.

5. Some of his favorite songs have been Hakuna Matata, War Eagle Fly Field (as he would say!!) Away Manger, Rocketship Run, and the Lady Song (which is the Brady Bunch theme song.)

6. He loves to eat macky (any kind of pasta), grapes, oranges (sometimes with sometimes without seeds.) and doesn't seem to be able to wake up in the morning until he has had his morning juice.

7. He loves being a big brother and is now quite wonderful at sharing with Isaac, though sometimes that means that Isaac gets things piled all over him... :)

8. Davis sometimes seems like the spiritual leader of the family as he often will want to pray several times at a meal, and will list off his aunts and uncles and other folks to pray for... what a precious little guy.

One thing that has remained the same is that "pup pup" is still his favorite stuffed animal and that he sucks his thumb to go to sleep...

We love our little Davis so much. Sometimes I look at him and just think that I don't want him to grow up anymore. Can't he just stay little forever?? Then I remember all of the special things that he can do now that he used to not be able to do and it seems alright for him to keep learning, exploring and growing more and more into the person God would have him become.

Happy 2nd Birthday, Davis!

We love you!

I'm linking his previous birthdays below for anyone who would like a stroll down memory lane about our cutie!!

Davis's Birth

Davis's First Birthday

P.S. Davis climbed his first tree today. :)

Oh Christmas Tree!

We recieved a package from some dear friends of ours yesterday. Davis was anxious to open the package and put our first presents under the tree. As I handed him each package ( I was in the kitchen and couldn't see what he was doing!) I asked him to put them under the tree. After they were all there, I went in to the living room to admire his work. The presents were all nestled on the lower branches of the tree! How was Davis supposed to know what "under the tree meant?" I thought it was just about one of the cutest things ever and the presents are still there, right where he left them yesterday.

Davis Counts to Ten

Another reason to smile

Davis Laughing Video hits 50,000 views on YouTube

In case you missed it, when Davis was 5 months old, we posted a video on YouTube of him laughing. It was one of those "glad we had the camera" moments. Over the last year, the video has really gained in popularity, and as of today it has now been viewed over 50,000 times! Since other people seem to like it, we're presenting it once more...hope it makes you smile once again.

Where were YOU on Aug 21, 2008?

What do we learn from Mommy and Daddy?

Like most people, I think that it is important that kids have both a mother and father who are involved in their lives. This is because kids tend to learn practical stuff from Mommy, and cool stuff from Daddy.

Cheesy transitions courtesy of Windows Movie Maker.

Isaac Week 2

So much has happened in the last week! Here is our week in pictures!

Grandma arrived to spend the week with us to help me adjust to being a mommy of 2 boys. It was so much fun to have her here, and I know she loved being with her grandsons!

Isaac's umbilical cord fell off, so he was able to have his first "full" bath! He wasn't too excited, but he'll soon learn it is fun!
Davis has loved Isaac's bathtub. He calls it his "pool." I think we'll be saving on water, since now Davis only wants to take baths in this little one rather then the big tub!
Dan's brother, Will and his family came to visit for the weekend. It was so much fun to have Uncle Will, Tita (aunt in Tagalog) Raf, Rob and Tom here! Davis really especially enjoyed the time playing with his aunt and uncle!
Proud Tita Raf!

After the full week, here is where you could find Isaac and Dan. :) What more comfy place then with your Daddy. Such special times!

A glimpse of our cutie with his eyes open! Hasn't been happening very often in the last 2 weeks!!

Davis bumps his head

Now that Davis has taken off walking it seems that we have more bumps and bruises. He has already had a couple bloody lips due to falling. I've heard this is just an inevitable part of having a child, but it still is especially no fun for Davis when it happens. He does have the best attitude about it though! This video is of Davis bumping his head this past weekend when we were away for the weekend. What a trouper!!! What a happy little boy. :)

Dan & Davis Featured on Photographers' Website

A friend of the family has started a photography studio, and has included a picture of me and Davis on their site.

Go to the Family page on KurzStudioPhotography.com, and click on image #16.

Davis's Surprise Christmas Present

Here's a late Christmas announcement!

Goodbye Manila

Although we are now in Seattle, I can't tell you about our trip until I finish up our time in the Philippines. We had a whirlwind few days before we actually departed and didn't have a chance to tell you about our last couple days! Here are a few pics!

Before church on Sunday the Chesnut family met us in our church parking lot to say a final goodbye. I think this was the first and last photo of our families together for a long time.

At church Nanay and Tatay spent a lot of time with Davis. They kept him during the service just about the entire time. Here they are singing with the congregation. :)

After church we went out to lunch with Nanay, Tatay, Alex, Emi and Joni, who have been some of our closest friends. It was really special as we enjoyed time together and also some of our favorite Filipino foods!

Baby Joni has grown up a lot since she was born! Davis and her love each other. We are sad to separate them! (aren't they cute!!)

Before we left we also spent a lot of time with our friends, Melissa, Andrew and Sarah. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures to share with you!!

All I can say is we already miss you all very much!!!

Special People -- Nanay & Tatay

Happy 67th Birthday Nanay!

Since we have been in the Philippines we have a couple who have adopted us as their kids. :) They have been married for 48 years, have 6 kids and many grandchildren. Their love for the Lord, each other and all they meet is shown in their lives. Yesterday we were invited to celebrate Nanay's birthday with family and friends.

Davis was passed around. Here he is with his Lola. (Tagalog for Grandma)

Davis playing with some of the grandkids. He even got to taste some fried lumpia (similar to egg roll) and fried chicken -- as soon as Mom noticed the cuisine was changed to cheerios and banana! :)

At the party there was a program of worship music, yummy food, speaking words of encouragement to Nanay, and even some dancing! Nanay danced with Tatay and also her sons. It was very special.

I had the privledge of sharing what Nanay means to me in my life.

We love Nanay & Tatay!

While Daddy was Away

My daddy had to go on a trip to an island named Panay with a group of students from Taiwan. Mommy said he'd be back in only a week, but I still felt kinda sad. This is the new face that I started making while he was away!

While he was gone, I stayed very busy. I practiced my crawling skills, but sometimes got stuck in weird positions and Mommy had to help me.

Mommy took me grocery shopping, and tried to get me to tell people War Eagle. I don't understand why yet, but she says it is going to be one of the most important phrases that I learn. And she says it will especially be useful in football season. I just learned about football, I want to get one. Scruffy has one but Mom won't let me chew on it since he does. :( Maybe for my birthday Daddy will get me one...

Another thing I did was have a slumber party with 3 of my cousins. They slept in Mommy's room with her. I was sad that night and kept crying, I think I just missed my daddy a lot and wished I could have watched the movie with my cousins. This picture is of my cousin, Allison. She is 3, so she doesn't need a crib anymore, but she used to have my crib, so we wanted to take a picture together. (isn't my turtle, cool?!)

I think my favoroite part was going to stay with Aunt Wendy. She lives where Mommy, Daddy and Scruffy did before I was born. Scruffy even got to come! She sang me lots of songs and gave me my first piano lesson. I also got to wear my warm pajamas because she uses air conditioning at night. It felt SO good!

My friends, Austin and Caleb came to play with me twice! I loved it!

This is my friend, Jai. He is 3 days older then me. We are doing some of the same things, but he has 2 teeth... I wish I had some teeth! Mommy says they'll come sometime and that I shouldn't compare myself so much to my friends!

Before we went home we also went to Mommy's school for me to play with some of her students. My friend Omega carried me around and took care of me. I hope Mommy takes me back there again soon.
Daddy had a good trip that he'll tell you about later. I had a great week, but was SO happy when Daddy got home. (and he was very happy to see me and Mommy and Scruffy.) 8 days is a long time in my life!

Davis Loves the BZZT!

For some reason I made a "bzzt" noise while holding Davis. I've never seen him laugh so hard.

Touring the Southeast USA

Our four week stint in the States is now finished. In the first 3 weeks of our journey, we traveled over 2500 miles throughout Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. Davis did phenomenonly well with all of the traveling and was perfectly fine with being held by someone new every day.

The last week of our trip involved preparations for Ellen's sister's wedding. We'll hope to get some pictures of that event up soon!

Hanging out with Gramps in Alabama.

April 20th was Ellen's birthday. The last time she was in the USA on her birthday was in 2003.

Dinner with my aunt Audrey, her boys, and their wives in South Georgia.

Davis with his great-grandmother (my grandmother) and Aunt Carolyn in North Florida.

A mini-reunion with Larry, Enol and Richie in Orlando.

The newest Brooks meets the rest of the Brooks clan in Northwest Florida.

Aunt Anne and Uncle Cory in Birmingham.

Telling some jokes with Grandma and Aunt Anne.

Welcome to America, Davis!

We made it safely to the US, and Davis did great during the flights. Here's a pictoral look at our 30 hour tour from Manila, Philippines to Atlanta, GA.

2:30AM, at the house in Manila. Davis is ready to ride in his first airplane.

At the Manila airport: Davis gets a new Lola.

Ellen watches over the bassinet that was bolted to the wall of the 747.

The bassinnet did its job beautifully. Davis did great on all the flights--we even had some other mothers who offered to trade us for their children!

(We declined.)

Chillin' (sideways)

Davis officially earned his "First Flyer" certificate from the crew and captain of Northwest Airlines.

Detroit: His first ever contact with American soil (carpet).

Safe in Atlanta with Grandma, Gramps, and Uncle Will.

Welcome, Davis!

On Christmas Eve, Davis Jonathan Brooks was born here in Manila. He weighed 6 lbs, 8 oz, and was 19 inches long.

December 24, 2006, 12:13pm. First picture--only seconds after delivery.

Getting cleaned up right after delivery.

Me, Ellen, and Aunt Anne watch his first feeding.

Davis's first portrait. Taken on Christmas Day.

Mommy and baby's late night feeding.

Mom and baby are doing fine...but we are ALL a little tired. Aunt Anne has done a great job in helping where needed. Fortunately, the nursing staff let her stay in the delivery room, so she was able to get some really great pictures. For the grandparents and relatives, these are pictures of (mostly) Davis. In the coming days, we'll tell more of the story of this Christmastime birth!