Happy Birthday Puppy J!

Our Little Boy turned two on February 16th and 

true to his blog name and a favorite of his, 

we had a puppy party (which basically means, I made him a puppy cake).

The poor guy was on the beginning of a cold, 

so some of these pictures show well his shiny eyes and runny nose.

He "helped" me make his cake.

The final product.

Before his party, attempting to get a few pictures.

What happens when you set a 2 year old

next to his cake to try to get a few pictures.

Yup, a lot of licking.

 And more licking.

He was blessed to have several cousins, aunts, uncle, and his

Grandpa, Grandma and Grammie at his party.

His favorite song right now is "Amazing Grace," so 

before we sang Happy Birthday to him, we all sang

Amazing Grace.  He started singing, then listened so 

adorably as everyone sang.  After his guests sang to him,

he then sang the first 

verse all by himself ( leaving out a few words).

He was tugging at his mommy's heart - he was precious!

Then we sang happy birthday and while we sang,,

he blew out his candles.

I love throwing 2 year old birthday parties.

I know the kids won't remember, but I have 

some of the sweetest and best memories from 

their young parties.  Puppy J's party 

was no exception.  So glad we had it

and thanks to all who attended (and sorry

to all who went home with a cold).

Potty Training

My mom came down the week of February 13th, before Puppy J's birthday and together we worked on potty training our sweet Puppy J!  Like usual, the first few days were messy and challenging, but by day 3 he was doing great!  I have always heard you have to give it at least three days, and this has stood true for me with all my children.

He has been doing great.  Even telling me while we

are driving down the road, so below is a picture of us

pulled over in a parking lot so he could go potty.

He had some adorable sayings that we all enjoyed

as he was learning.

He called his undies = onions

He called the marshmallows we gave him for a reward = mushrooms

And when he did go poop in the potty, he called that his = rocks, which has now

turned into "I have to go poopy rocks."

So, I can't believe it, but for the first time in 9 years (almost 10 years)

we are diaper free...well kind of, Puppy J still wears diapers at nap and bedtime.

It is exciting and kind of sad all at the same time. 

Moving onto new seasons of life.

After Shower Hair

Cute Boy

Love this guy!!

Tractors

Grammie brought new tractors for Puppy J and Farmer J's birthday presents.  Puppy J turned 2 on February 16 and Farmer J will turn 4 on April 6th.  The boys were very very excited!

Two Boys

Step stools on the ledge by the fireplace.

When I told Farmer J I didn't think this looked safe,

especially since they were about to stand on the stools

and jump off, he said "Don't worry mom, we will

not break the fire place!"

Smiles - That was not my concern!

No More Training Wheels

With this nice February weather,

we have been outside a lot this month.

This little lady hopped right on her

bike and took off with no training wheels.

She was getting close in the fall,

so it was nice to see she didn't

need much practice.

Marker

I hate to admit that I

was sitting right next to him.

In my defense, I was helping four young children try to write 

their valentines.  So that is my excuse as to why I got

distracted.  

Brothers

Puppy J LOVES when any sibling

takes time and reads to him before bed.

I don't really like to give this up easily,

as I really enjoy my time with Puppy J before bed.

But as you can see on little brother's face,

he sure adores his older siblings

(and I do believe he is quite loved

by all in our home!)

Family Fun Night

We had a family fun night and enjoyed a few games together.  Funny how these things are so simple and the kids loved them so much.  I think using marshmallows definitely added to the fun.

The first game we played was trying to blow the marshmallow across the line without it falling off the pan.

Then we used toothpicks and marshmallows and 

built our own creations.

Next we tossed marshmallows into cups.

Puppy J was so cute.  He tried one toss and when

it didn't make it,

he went for an easier approach.

Then dad tossed marshmallows into 

some wide open mouths.

Finally we played a Q-tip shooting game.  

Stick a q-tip into a straw and shoot it into a

bucket.  This game was a keeper and

one I think we will play again.

It was a fun night and despite the 

kids being hyped up on the sugar

from all the marshmallows,

they all went to bed no problem : )

More Snow Fun

Since it has been quite a mild winter,

we are getting outside with every bit of snow that falls.

Big Brother kindly pulling around his little brother.

The cousins were over to play.

They found the sleds and had fun

pushing and pulling each other around.

Puppy Craft

Basketball

Big J is playing basketball.

Overnight at Grandpa and Grandma's

The kids spent the night at

Grandma and Grandpa's

Grandpa always has 

something fun for the kids to do.

Making homemade "ice cream."

Kids at Grandma and Grandpa's = Date night for Dad and Mom