I'm too cool for you ! :-)

Oh, my..... this kid is wearing us out!! The day he started walking changed our lives forever :-) He went from a laid back couch potato to a full blown tornado that runs through the house creating havoc :-) He throws anything he can get his hands on...walks by tables and just pushes everything off them and then moves on to his next target...he loves to laugh REALLY loud, and Loves to throw his food at dinner (and has even found that it makes daddy mad, so he waits until Dave isn't looking ).... he would play outside in the pouring rain, snow, sleet or hail, and I went from giving him a bath every other day to sometimes two a day because he's so messy ;-) He even has learned to fight back the big sister...And we love him so much.......that being said, Dave and I cherish the few hours of peace and quiet that we can get- I have a feeling Ben has come into his own!!!
Worn out with his cool glasses on

After dinner he likes to lounge in his own Elmo chair (and will NOT let Emma near it) to watch a video, he thinks he's so cool.....

trying to grab the camera

Scary! He's not too sure of this, ut he wanted to try it on :-)

More from the zoo....

Thanks Alicia for all the pictures...as promised, more pictures from our little trip to the zoo!

One of Emma's favorites- watching the Sea Lions!

Alicia and Emma

Ben and Emma loved this little Meercat- it looked so cozy in its little den and it just stared at them. Ben just kept laughing and trying to pound on the glass

Emma is trying to look "cool" in this one :-)

Alicia got a great shot of the tiger....

A day at the zoo!

On Wednesday we met my sister Alicia at the Portland Zoo for a chilly, but very fun afternoon! It was 29 degrees when we got their, so the kids had to be bundled up :-) but the sun was shining, and we felt like we were the only people there, so we got to see lots of animals. My camera ran out of batteries after two pictures, so I'll post more after I steal some from the sis :-)

Emma never goes anywhere without her new "Wizard of Oz" shoes....Lions, Tigers, and Bears, Oh MY!!

Benjamin is 1 !!!

I can't believe that out little guy turned 1 yesterday! This year has gone by so fast, and it's been amazing to watch him grow and learn all kinds of new things! He has started walking just in time for the big day, and he loves every minute of life! What a happy guy and his smile can light up my day. We love you buddy!

Here is Benji the day after he was born.....
And here he is now- look out world!

Happy Birthday Benny!

What a fun birthday party for Ben, thanks everyone for coming! Ben got to have all of his cousins here, except for Finn, so that was so fun. The kids all had a great time, and Ben loved every minute of it... I have to say though, he pooped out pretty early, the birthday boy crashed at about 6:30, and was asleep about 6:45 :-) The party went on without him, though, and we must have worn him out because he didn't wake up until 8 the next morning!

watching us all sing happy birthday (he thought that was pretty funny)

We love you bud!

Nana and Ben

Ben with some of his cousins checking out the goods

I love his face in this one- he looks so excited :-)

5 years!

Dave and I had our 5th Anniversary on the fourth, I can't believe it! Its been a wonderful 5 years. I think we've packed about as much as we can in our years together so far, and I can't wait to see what the next, well, 60 or 70 years bring :-) I love you, Dave!

Happy New Year! 2008 is here!

Cousins Lucas, Bella and Emma ringing in the New Year

Our niece Isabella

Gentemann Visit!!

We were so happy to have Amanda, Wade and the kids come down our way and stay with us a couple days! So fun, and I miss them already! Okay, Amanda, I hope you got some better pictures than me, these were the only two that were semi-ok :-) The kids had a blast, and we also got to see Brad and Steph, and Lucas and Mieke.... what a fun night! So, I think its my turn to come to Illinois soon.....cuz I miss you guys like crazy!! Hope you had a safe trip back!

Emma and Gracie

Emma, Gracie, Charlie and Ben jumping on the futon!