Crazy Drivers

Here is Bryce and Cayden out for a ride in Bryce's new Gator. Cayden is still able to fit and help him drive around. Unfortunately, it has been too cold and snowy here to be out too much in it.

Christmas 2009

We had a truly amazing Christmas. We spent a week in Colorado with family and friends and flew back to Oregon on Christmas Day and had our family Christmas and then enjoyed an evening with friends. We are lucky beyond words. Here are just a couple of pictures of the kids opening presents. Santa brought Cayden the Star Wars Republic Gun Ship Lego. It must have 600 pieces and is currently ALL over the kitchen table. Bryce received his very own John Deere Gator and he is already practicing his driving skills (good thing we have a wide open yard).

Bryce part II

So Bryce is still being a pest at bedtime. Imagine that... Well, tonight, he strikes again. Here is the newest picture of our little man falling asleep in his chair. This one isn't as blurry because he fell asleep with the lights on.

What Cayden Wrote

I put this on Facebook the other day but thought I would share it with everyone who wasn't on there. In my classroom the other day some nice student had written on the white board "Mrs. Lowenbach Rocks." When Cayden came in that afternoon after school he added underneath that "Ya, she really does. Do your assignment." It just cracked me up. I am glad that he thinks so highly of me! I wonder if he has me for a high school teacher what he will be writing on my white board?

Bryce... again...

Bryce has been in a big boy bed now about a month. He took about three days to get the hang of it and has been doing great since. Until now. The last couple of nights he has been getting out of bed again and again. We have patiently been leading him back to bed and eventually he goes to sleep. However, the other day, he even gave us some grief at naptime. When Jeff walked him back to his room Bryce climbed up on his chair and his room and started to look at a book. Jeff left him in his chair and about ten minutes I went back to check on him and this is what I saw. It is blurry because it was dark and I was really worried about waking him up. He sure is sweet.

The Play

Cayden's first grade class participated in a play about space. Cayden played the part of Dr. Solar System and he did great. He was really nervous at first and mumbled through his lines but eventually got so comfortable with his role that he was yawning. I have to admit that while I was sitting there watching him I was holding the tears back. It is hard to believe that he will be 7 soon and I was so proud of how well he was doing in this play. I will try to put a few pictures and a short video on.

Our Christmas Tradition

Since I shared our Thanksgiving tablecloth tradition I thought I would share our Christmas tradition. We own three books by Jeff Guinn. They are "The Autobiography of Santa Claus", "How Mrs. Claus Saved Christmas", and "The Great Santa Search". All three books have 24 chapters in them and are designed to be read one chapter a day until Christmas. Jeff and I bought the books when Cayden was too

young to listen to them and Bryce wasn't even around at all. Finally, last year, we read the first book (The Autobiography of Santa Claus) with Cayden. He

loved it even though it didn't have many pictures. Tonight, we started "How Mrs. Claus Saved Christmas". So far, he said it is a great book. I look forward to the next 23 nights with him.

Bryce's discovery

Rollin', rollin', rollin' keep that paper rollin'. Bryce discovered the toilet paper roll. It is so true what people say i.e. "I just turned around for a minute". It is what happened here. I was running around putting things away and Bryce was following me as he will often do saying "hold you, hold you". I was doing my best to get a few things done before I began to pack him around. I have to be honest and say that when I was no longer hearing "hold you, hold you" I didn't think too much about what grabbed his attention. As I went looking for him I found him sitting on his potty chair unrolling the toilet paper. He was having a great time!

Christmas Tree Waiting

This year we went Christmas tree hunting with the Crofcheck family and the Sloper family. We were a bit rushed but got a few pictures. You will notice the absence of men and of trees. In this new tradition that I love, the menfolk head out in search of the perfect tree and the womenfolk stay by the fire and EAT. Did I mention that I love this new tradition? Bryce is a bit young to head out on the hunt so he stayed with us ladies to eat and stay warm by the fire. We were surprised by the amount of snow at our little "spot".

Bryce, mom, and a potato chip

Niki, Erin, Sarah, and Kim

Sarah and Bryce

And, Bryce (our honorary little lady)