Isaac - 3.5 years old

He loves his new slide!

Straddle jump!

Cheese!

His love for baby sister is so big, he cannot wait to meet her!

Isaac is such a big boy! I cannot believe he is already 3.5, he impresses me daily with his thoughts and his actions. His vocabulary is growing exponentially...probably because he does not ever stop talking! He loves music, and has started singing all the time. He decides what songs we listen to in the truck and will sing along with his CDs. I love hearing him sing his worship songs, especially as he's playing in the house and singing softly. His favorite question is still, "Why?" Even as I type this he is asking me many questions, including, "WHY?" He asks about baby sister all the time, he currently laid a toy lizard on my tummy and asked if baby sister knows his lizard is laying on her. He cannot wait to meet her, he asks daily when March will be here or when baby sister will come out. Isaac just told me that his favorite thing to do is driving his gator in the yard! Oh what a good driver he is! His favorite color is orange...which does not make daddy very happy. His favorite song is Zaccheus. His favorite books are his Clifford books. His favorite TV show is, "Jake and the Neverland Pirates." Although he only watches about 20 seconds of it before loosing interest. When I ask Isaac a question like, what do you want to eat or what did you do at school today, he always answers, "You know." Speaking of school, he is still really enjoying it! He loves being with his friends and his teachers, and he loves to learn. Although the other day he broke my heart when he told me that one of his friends would not let him play in the tree playhouse on the playground. She told him he could never come in. I could tell it bothered him, and I felt so bad for him. He is still very timid with other kids and does not stand up for himself. I hate that he is easily bossed around by other kids. But I love his sweet temperment and am thankful that he is such a loving, kind boy. Isaac's favorite day of the week might be Sunday because he cannot wait to go to Sunday school. He enjoys being with his friends there, kids and grown ups, and he loves to learn about Jesus! I am thankful for the amazing church family we have and the way they teach my kids about God and His Word.

Isaac is still a great eater as far as not being too picky, but oh my goodness, he is the slowest eater! The main reason he is so slow is because he doesn't stop talking, even while eating. Isaac loves sweets, he gets so excited about cookies or cupcakes, but he also loves fruit, which makes me so happy. He is a silly boy, he keeps me on my toes with his jokes or silly antics. He has nicknames for everyone, I am Opy, Luke is Pookie Louie, and Daddy is DiDi. Isaac is still taking gymnastics and really enjoying that. He is doing really well with it, and asks me all the time when he gets to go to his gymnastics class.

Isaac is my big boy, with a big heart. He also has a stubborn streak, and moves a little slower than I'd like at times, but he teaches me to enjoy the little things in life and not always be in such a hurry.

Luke - 20 months

Ready to slide!

Laying in front of the TV, watching Thomas the Train.

Sweet kisses!

Luke is changing on a daily basis these days, I love watching him learn and grow. He has started to say a few more words and copies everything he sees other people doing. Some of his new words are: over - anytime a song ends or TV show ends, he announes OVER!; hooray - we listen to/sing "If you're happy and you know it" in the car and he loves to say Hooray!; Cole - he loves his dog and says his name proudly; firetruck - okay he can't say firetruck, but he says his version of it everytime we pass the fire station; Daag - this is how you say bye in Dutch, it's one of his favorite words! He points to all of his facial features, when we ask him in Dutch or in English, but when we ask him to point to his eye in Dutch he always says eye (in Dutch) and smiles...it's so cute! Luke copies everything he sees Isaac doing. For example, the other day Isaac was asking the dogs to shake, he watched Isaac say shake and grab the dog's foot, over and over. Shortly after Luke started saying his version of shake as he grabbed the dog's paw. He even tried to shake my foot. :-) He is still obsessed with Thomas the Train and his face lights up when he sees Thomas or any of his train friends. He got a toothbrush for Christmas that sings the Thomas theme song, when we go upstairs the first thing he does is run to his bathroom to turn on the song. He sings along and dances, too. He is sleeping in Isaac's room now, well it's now the boys' room, and he seems to be enjoying it. He never even goes in his old room any more, and thankfully he sleeps through any noises Isaac makes throughout the night. Isaac is doing well, too, he LOVES having Luke in his room with him. Luke plays independently really well. He is content playing in the playroom, gameroom, or anywhere there is a truck or train. He is learning his shapes, he can sort almost all of the shapes in his shape sorter, he sometimes does it wrong, but I think that's more of him being silly than that he can't do it. Thankfully, Luke is eating better now, too. He goes to the pantry and pulls out a snack multiple times a day...and boy does he get upset if I don't give him what he wants. Luke's happy place is outside, he enjoys the freedom he gets outside...his three favorite outdoor activities are pushing his car around the yard (usually following Isaac who drives his cars around); swinging so high on either the baby swing or the big boy swing; and going down his new slide! Luke also loves books, his attention span for books amazes me, he is mesmerized by certain books and will sit with me to read them over and over again.

Luke is a sweet boy, who loves to cuddle and give kisses. He is also a strong willed boy who can be very determined and stubborn at times. I love his personality, he challenges me on a daily basis, but he also brings me SO much joy!

Playing together

The boys are beginning to really play well together, which is fabulous! Luke is very good at playing independently, but usually Isaac still wants me to come play or needs my help with something. This afternoon I was tired and trying to sit on the couch for a bit, the boys were playing in the living room and then went into the playroom together. After a few minutes I realized that they were playing so nicely together, I hadn't heard any arguing and neither had come out to get my attention. I continued to rest and watch TV for a little longer...eventually I couldn't take it any more, I had to go see what they were doing. I snapped these two pictures when I went in, they were very content and playing sweetly.

Swingset for the boys

Carl has been working very hard building an amazing swingset for the boys. It is almost finished, so the boys are able to play on it now. They LOVE it! I will post pictures of the entire set once it's complete. For now, I had to post this sweet picture of my boys.

A New Chapter and a New Year!

This week started a new chapter for the boys...with baby girl coming in less than 9 weeks, it was time to move Luke into Isaac's room. We were hesitant at first, as Luke does not handle change well, but Isaac was thrilled and asking daily when Luke would start sleeping with him. Thursday we decided it was time to face it, after bath time we brought both boys in, got them ready for bed and set Luke up in his new bed. He was definitely nervous, so we got him his pacifier, and he was quiet. Isaac, our talker, was very quiet and both boys fell asleep quickly. They both slept soundly all night, Isaac until 8:00 and Luke until 8:30! Whew, what a relief to make it through night one! Last night went just as well, and so far so good for tonight, although the constant fireworks are making me nervous.

Another big milestone from this week is that Luke finally hit 20 pounds! Unfortunately he was sick this week, so I had to take him to the doctor, but we found out the good news! He's growing, slowly but surely, our little peanut! He had an ear infection in both ears, but the medicine worked quickly, he was back to himself in no time.

2011 has been a great year for us, we are blessed with love and joy, wonderful family, and fantastic friends. I am so anxious for 2012 and the changes that lie ahead...it's sure to be another incredible year! I thank God daily for the many blessings in my life, He is so good!

Christmas 2011

This Christmas was so fun...I think as the boys are getting older it will only get more fun as their excitement and anticipation grows. Isaac woke up a little early because he couldn't find his stuffed animal, when Carl went in to help him find it the first thing he asked was, "Is Santa here yet?" He went back to sleep for a little bit, but was up about 45 minutes before Luke. He was so excited, but very patient as we waited for Luke. Carl made us yummy Rudolph pancakes, so we ate a nice breakfast together while waiting. Once Luke got up there was no keeping Isaac back. So we gave them each their stockings and the present opening started! We gave them a Thomas the train toy which was out and ready to be played with, Luke was so excited! He played with that for a while and even got mad at us when we tried to give him a present to open. My boy loves his trains! Isaac couldn't get enough of the presents, he loved opening them, giving them to who they were for, and seeing what fun surprise waited inside. It was the first year he really got into opening presents. The boys got some fun gifts and had a great time playing with them all morning.

After an unsuccessful nap time we headed over to Oma and Opa's house for the den Dulk Christmas. It was so fun to see the excitement between all the kids as they gave out their presents and helped each other open all the gifts. After the presents they all played so well together, and really had a great time! Oma prepared a yummy dinner for us, which we all enjoyed eating and being together.

Monday we headed over to Emmy and Gumby's house for the Griffin Christmas, and what fun it was! The boys don't get to see their cousins on that side of the family as often, so they enjoyed getting to play and visit with them. Luke and Mariah are only a few weeks apart in age, so they have a good time together. Emmy prepared a great lunch for us which we all enjoyed before the fun began. After lunch, Gumby read the story of Jesus' birth, and we talked about the real reason we celebrate Christmas. The kids were all blessed with many fun things...I love seeing them all play together.

Christmas can be a hectic time as we rush around, but we really tried to keep our focus on Christ and His birth. I think Isaac really gained a good understanding of Jesus and his birth this year, I pray that as the years go on we continue to focus on Him and that the boys continue to learn more about Him and His life.

December Happenings

Oh my goodness, I am so far behind, I hardly even know where to start! We have had a busy, but oh so fun December! I'll try to give just the highlights.

• We started our Christmas fun with a trip to Santa's Wonderland to look at the beautiful Christmas lights. We went with some of the boys' best friends; Luke, Levi, and Titus, and it was an exciting adventure! We drove to College Station where we met up with our friends' family, and had a great dinner at the Chicken Express. This was a perfect break for the kids to get out and stretch their legs before heading out to look at lights. Santa's Wonderland is a drive thru Christmas lights display, which I've been to in the past, but nothing beats going there with my boys! They LOVED it! Luke was yelling and pointing the entire time! And the smile never left Isaac's face.



• Isaac had a Christmas program at school on the last day before the break, and it was precious! They sang Away in a Manger, Go Tell it on the Mountain, and Jingle Bells. Isaac looked a little more nervous than during his last performance, but he still enjoyed it and did some singing. He wanted to clap after every song, but the boys on either side of him kept stopping him. Poor thing, he was disappointed they wouldn't let him clap. Luke got SO excited when he saw his brother up on stage, his face was priceless as he pointed at Isaac. After the program we got to go back to Isaac's classroom for a brief visit with his class and teachers...I've said it many times before, but his school and teachers are a true blessing!



• Sinterklaas, the Dutch Santa Claus, is always incooperated into our Christmas traditions. Every year we get to see him at the beginning of December and he brings a gift for the kids. It is a great time of singing Dutch Christmas songs and learning more about our Dutch traditions. The boys did great visiting with him, Luke wouldn't sit with him, but he didn't cry...Isaac had a full conversation with him and sat with him for a few pictures. He brought Isaac a new microphone and Luke got a Thomas the Train book.



• We were supposed to host a Christmas cookie making playdate here at the house for our church friends, but Isaac got sick and so we had to cancel. I was so disappointed to not get to do this, so I decided that we'd attempt it on our own. Whew! That was a tough activity, I'm not sure we're ready for that yet. Hee hee! Isaac had fun though, and the cookies came out pretty good. Luke was mad that he couldn't help more, but he got over it once I gave him a yummy snack and a seat where he could watch us. After making the cookies we packaged them up and delivered them to some of our neighbors. Isaac was very excited to have a part in our gifts for our neighbors.



• Isaac talked all month about going to see Santa Claus, so I finally took them towards the end of the month. I knew that Luke wouldn't enjoy it, which is why I hesitated, but Isaac really insisted, so we went. They were both so excited to see him and talked all about him while we waited. Once it was our turn, Isaac crawled right up in his lap, but Luke grabbed ahold of me and did not want to let go. I went ahead and put him on Santa's lap just to get a few pictures, and boy are they priceless! Isaac sat perfectly with a sweet smile, while Luke screamed and reached out for me. I felt a little bad about it, but also got a good laugh from it. The picture was so funny I had to share it, I sent it in to a local TV station, and it was aired on Christmas morning! Unfortunately we didn't get to see it, but the news anchor e-mailed me saying she lvoed it and was showing it immediately.



• Our church held a Christmas Eve Eve service on Dec. 23, so we invited our family and some friends to join us. Oma, Opa, Emmy, Gumby, Mariah, and the Hendersons all came over for a lasagna dinner and then we all went to church together. It was wonderful to have so many special people there with us. The boys love going to church, but this day was different because they got to stay with us. Luke is normally hesitant to go to Sunday school, so he loved that he got to stay with us. He loved it so much that he surprised everyone with how outgoing and wild he was. During the service all the children were asked to come up front to listen to a story, read by the Community Pastor. This pastor happens to be a good friend of ours, and someone the boys adore, so they took it upon themselves to just climb right up next to him on the stage. I got them both down before he began reading, and was shocked by Luke's crazyness, he was so silly during the entire story, he was all over the place! Isaac was sitting nicely, or so I thought, I was busy watching Luke, after a few minutes I look up and see Isaac up on stage next to the pastor again! What!?! I'm not sure who those boys were...apparently they decided it was their night. Hee hee! The service was wonderful, the perfect way to start the true Christmas celebrations.



• Christmas Eve we decided to lay low, just have a quiet day at the house preparing for Christmas and enjoying family time. Isaac has been sleeping in a toddler bed, and we decided that it was time to move him to a twin size bed, so we did it on that day. He watched as Carl moved the bed in, but then I made him stay out as I put on his new bedding...a firetruck quilt...which he has been asking for! He was so excited about his new bed and his firetrucks, he couldn't wait to get in bed that night! Before bed we all crawled in Isaac's bed and read two Christmas stories together...one about the birth of Jesus and another about Santa. It was a sweet time for all of us.