Easter - Part 2

The Easter Bunny found us last night! He had a "Mickey" theme, with a few airplane friendly items included. Smart bunny.

We joined the Becker Clan for an Easter breakfast and my kids proved (once again) that they aren't shy. They both LOVED the {creepy} Easter Bunny. A little too much. I had to get them out of there before we had another stalking charge filed against us. You may remember Jack's obsession last year…

Kinley wasn't interested in the Easter Bunny. And her Grandma Linda got her a little too close for her liking.

 Yes, that is Jack's piece of cake. And he had a chocolate bunny. Can you say - SUGAR HIGH?

Don't let Jack's "shy face" make you think he wasn't JUST as excited as Josie to be sitting with the Bunny. He even insisted on giving the Bunny one of his chocolate bunnies (because nothing says I LOVE YOU like a little cannibalism)… That's love. Creepy love, but still love.

Easter - Part 1

We had Tyson's Aunt Sally, cousin Blake, and Nuala over for a mini Egg Hunt yesterday. It's always fun to see them and catch up. Nuala and Jack are a few months apart and always have fun playing together.

 Nuala was a master Egg Hunter.

 Jack - not so much. He walked past so many eggs. Maybe a vision test should be on the To Do list.

Tucker recognized Nuala's stash and tried sucking up. I don't think it worked.

 Josie wasn't sure what she was looking for or why. She was pretty excited to carry a plastic bag like "the big kids." Once she opened the eggs - she was excited. Josie hasn't found a treat she didn't like.

 Jack and Nuala after the hunt.

Winner Winner! If we were naming a Queen of the Hunt…it would have been Nuala. I think she counted that she found 17 eggs! (although she planned to share some with her Grandpa Tom and her mommy) Jack found 7 and Josie found 4. Nice work, kids!

SB2K13

Josie's just gearing up for Spring Break 2013! The Sun N Lakes Community Pool is about to get CRAAAAZZZYYYY.

Happy Easter! More pics to come…Shirlee.

Brotherly Love

I snapped a picture at the perfect moment to catch Jack squirting Josie in the bathtub tonight. He is such a great big brother! He loves teasing her (but it's always done lovingly).

ONE.MORE.DAY.   I think I can...I think I can...

Snow Over It

 Nothing screams INDIANA more than a few inches of snow - 5 days into Spring. 

Josie didn't seem to mind the white stuff. But I did. I shoveled our driveway, cussed under my breath, and vowed to find a snowblower (on sale) this summer.

 delicious.

I had another snow day yesterday…which means my summer is dwindling before my eyes.

We definitely took one for the team. Michigian friends, you're welcome.

Milk Strike

You've heard of a hunger strike? Well, Josie is currently on a milk strike. I'm embarrassed to admit (especially on the internets) - but she has been taking a bottle and she's 16 months old. I said it out loud to someone the other day and just having the words roll off my lips was enough to shame me into eliminating it from the bedtime routine.

Tonight I tried to give her a sippy cup. But she adamantly refused. Except for a couple quick swigs (because she was really thirsty). But mostly she was waving it away and yelling at me in a dialect I'm unfamiliar with...

We'll see how long this lasts. Actually, I can already feel myself caving during an upcoming plane ride that just happens to fall right at bedtime. Who planned that??? Oh wait, me.

One Nice Day

We had A nice day this weekend. A day where the sun was shining - which isn't a common thing these days. I hear we have snow on the way, but I'm pretending that it won't actually happen. 

Jack enjoyed digging in his pit-o-sand. Just more affirmation that we really need to get a new playground. I may lose my mind this summer without one...

Josie experienced #winterbabyproblems when she tried to walk on the grass and in the mulch. She definitely doesn't like walking on new "textures." The beach in Florida next week should be a REAL treat...

Needless to say, the Beckers are ready for more sunshine and nicer weather. Bring it on!

Towers

We are happy to have Tyson home from the Academy. He's been in Chicago since Tuesday. Jack really misses his daddy when he's not home. But I'm pretty sure Tyson misses Jack (and Josie) more...

 Jack and Tyson built a pretty amazing tower this morning.

It didn't take Josie long to realize that Jack didn't want her anywhere near his tower. So, being the little sister, she walked as close as she could to it…just to get a rise out of him. Her grandparents think she has a halo…but they don't know the other side of Josie...

A tribute to Oak

Yesterday we lost a member of our "pack." Nancy and Denny's dog Oakley passed away. He was 15 and lived a great life. He was such a sweet boy and will be missed by all of us!

Oak loved sleeping on the back of chairs & couches.  He was adventurous - often leading Nancy on fun games of "catch me if you can" - around the lake and in their West Central neighborhood (aka: The Hood). He was on the lam on more than one occasion.

Tyson bought Annie (Oakley's sister) when he was in high school. Oakley was thrown in as a "bonus" and most definitely sweetened the deal.

Coop & Tuck will pour one out for their homie. Hope there are lots of delicious treats in Dog Heaven, buddy! XOXOXO

A Wee Bit Irish?

Even though we had another "snow day" yesterday - my children still went to their school. (Our motto: "If I'm payin' - they're playin'.")

Tyson was working from home and I was doing report cards. Jack & Josie put on their St. Patty's Day gear and were off to see their friends.

Josie loved her tutu….a little more than I would have liked, actually. She only gets her "girlie" items from her Grandmas (both of them).

Just before I broke the news to her that she is 0% Irish. Sorry, kid, you're (mainly) German. 

Bad News: NO "Kiss me, I'm Irish" shirts for you. 

Good News: Germans think it's okay to drink EVERY DAY. Prost! (Great Aunt Becky & Great Uncle Bill will teach you the official "family drinking song" -  someday…)

Cooper - photo bombing Josie. Look how ashamed he looks back there.  Stop being such a creeper, Coop.

Jack wore a festive t-shirt, too. But was completely uninterested in getting his picture taken. Typical.

Tucker - serving as Jack's booster seat on the couch. They are really cute together. Today when I picked Jack up from school - the dogs were in the car. Jack gave Tuck a big hug and said, "Hey, buddy! How are you, Bud?"

Cereal, please?

Josie always seems to know what she wants when it comes to food. And in the morning she wants cereal…in a ziploc bag…to go.

I wanna be like Jack...

Josie wants to do whatever her big brother is doing. Yesterday - she saw him pull up a chair (too close to the TV) to watch Little Einsteins. So she trotted off to the playroom and tried to pull her own chair into the TV room. Daddy had to help her. But you can see - she was PRETTY happy with herself once she sitting next to her big brother, even if she didn't care about watching TV.

Eat'em UP Hoosiers!

Josie has some advice for the Hoosiers today.

"Eat'em up, BOYS!"

GO IU!!

Mickey Mouse

Jack is showing off the Mickey Mouse we bought him (at the airport, 5 min before we boarded the plane) in Florida. FYI - You should really do your "shopping" prior to entering the airport. That bad boy cost $15. WalMart (I guarantee) sells it for $3.

Good Ol' Walt Disney…gets you at every turn… If you want to have heart palpitations - just check out the price of Disney tickets. For real. My kids need to make a decision - a semester of college (when they're 18) or a trip to Disney (when they're 5). Choose wisely, children.

PS: Don't you love Cooper pouting in the background?

Cooper (murmuring under his breath): "Why did they bring a Mickey for the kid? Where is MY Mickey? No one cares about Cooper. I hate everyone."

Cold…again

Here is some randomness from my iPhone...

Jack and Josie looking at our (frozen) pool and wondering why we can only use it 3 months out of the year. Great question, kids. Indiana weather is terrible. (I seriously almost froze to death at recess today.)

Jack must know March Madness is approaching…because he's been really into basketball. He thought it was HILARIOUS when Daddy dunked him. Oladipo style.

And regardless of whether the kitchen is REAL or PLAY - It's still Josie's favorite place to be.

Miami (Part 2)

Part Two of our trip was visiting some of our FAVORITE people - Jeff & Jaime Moses (and their son, Cameron). We call them "the Mosi" and they were our buddies when we lived in Bloomington. It has been TWO years and we finally met Cameron. Finally.

Tyson was missing Jack, so Cameron let him fly him all over the house like Superman. Win, win.

 Isn't he the cutest?? I think he and Jack would have a blast together!

The Mosi

On our way to the airport - we passed this… I think Florida wanted us to stay. They named a road after us.

And on a final note, I'm am officially NOT FRIENDS with Mother Nature. It's snowing right now. Like HUGE flakes of snow. I'm so over you, Winter. Move along.

Miami (Part 1)

Tyson and I were down in the sunshine last weekend! We had a wedding in Miami and it was AMAZING! The weather was gorgeous (especially for a couple of Hoosiers, hungry for warmth). We stayed with my parents on Thursday night and then headed off to Key Biscayne on Friday.

It was GREAT to see so many of my best friends from DePauw! We always have a great time together!

 There was a little Harlem Shake action… Which lead to the video below.

Did you see us? We were the awkward white people in the sea of Brazilians. Plenty of adult beverages were consumed prior to filming that…(FYI)

We stayed downtown Miami - and heard about every language imaginable. The best line came from our cab driver:

Driver: You know why I love Miami?

Tyson: No, why???

Driver: Because it's so close to the United States.

He was Columbian and very nice.

Alpha Phi sisters