HELLOOOOOOOO!!! Is anybody there?!?

So....

Sorry...

It's been busy...

I'm a bad blogger...

I really need to get back in the habit...

The short story is that walking babies really wear you out!

The last time I posted was in July. Kaleb had started walking in June.

Kaleb has grown a little since then...

Kaleb is now not only walking, but running, walking backwards, twirling in circles, jumping up and down, and climbing on the the couch, chairs, table, the window seat in the boy's bedroom, and up the ladder to Evan's loft bed. (Yeah. Really.)

In addition to climbing on top of everything he can get his little behind on top of, he also gets INTO anything he can get his little hands on. The cupboards have been emptied more than once, the computer has been switched off a few times, the DVD player has been opened, the TV remotes are a coveted item, we've had salt and pepper both "sprinkled" everywhere. Water has been dumped, computer programs opened that we didn't even know we had on our computer, lamps knocked down and a toys have been strewn from one end of the house to the other.

And Kaleb is ALL boy.

And he is all his Daddy's boy. He's all about the music. He dances, sways, sings and even rocks out on his guitar. No annoying Twinkle Twinkle at our house. K-Bob's guitar rocks out Wild Thing, Love Shack, Message in a Bottle, All Star, and Crazy Little Thing Called Love.

But he's also a lot like his brother in that if it's a ball, he wants it and he wants to throw it. Thanks to Grandma and Papa B, we've had two weeks of Splash'n'Learn at the Wood County Hospital's therapy pool with Cousin Greyson. The first couple of minutes in the pool, he wasn't so sure this was for him, but then, he realized it was like a great big bathtub, and he was all over it! Splashing is fun!

He's also his momma's boy. I walk in the door, and it's MOMMA, MOMMA, MOMMA!!!! and rushes for in for a big hug and kisses. Melts my heart every time. Best greeting money cannot buy.

We've had many, many ouchies since he's started walking, and several really good knots on the head. But he's amazing. He shakes it off and moves on pretty quickly.

Now that Greyson is mobile, he and Kaleb are quickly becoming buddies. They spend all day together at their wonderful babysitter, Cindy's. Then, more often than not, they end up spending the evening together, too, as well as the weekends. SO i suppose they have to like each other, or the next 18 years are going to be pretty tough on them! They had their first "sleepover" on Sunday (until Ry picked up G-Man at 9pm)

Evan has kept us pretty busy, too! We had baseball over the summer, soccer in the fall, and karate all year long.

The big news is that Evan started KINDERGARTEN this past fall. Can you believe it?? I know. I'm sharing this 6 months after the fact. But still. He's a student at Van Buren Elementary and is there 2 1/2 days a week. His school is AWESOME! It's a Medieval themed school.

It's amazing, though. Why is it that kids get SO excited about snow days? How can he dread school, when he's only been IN school for a few months? We had a good laugh last week. He told us that he didn't think he was going to have school the next day, and we poo-pah'd it, saying that the snow storm was over and not to get his hopes up. Wouldn't you know it, that stinker didn't have school the next day. There was a fog cancellation. He was overheard telling his teacher at his "old school" (daycare) that he "prayed and prayed for snow, but he didn't pray for all that wind!"

Evan continues to excel in Karate. He's taking his test for the Green Belt a week from Saturday. None of us can believe that's possible. It just seems like he got his Orange Belt. Now, he's an Orange Belt with two stripes. He'll pass. He takes his tests VERY seriously. I wish we could see him practice more often, but the times never seem to work out. We did get to participate in a Halloween parade with him for Karate, (where K-Bob had his first sucker).

Soccer is also a big sport for him. Fall was huge. We were surprised at the difference in the way that the kids play changed from last year to this year. The field doubled in size, which made a big difference, and now, they seem to have added more positions and rules. Maybe next year, they'll keep score (some of the parents do keep score, but I think for the most part, we manage to keep track only of Evan's goals). It's fun watching Evan-- he's very competitive, and has started to strategize when plays and often hangs back, and just waits. It's fun to watch.

He also continues to enjoy playing games-- whether its UNO, Wii, Leapster, or basic handheld electronic games, he loves to play. He also loves playing penny hockey on the board that his Uncle Lance made when he was in Jr. High. I'm looking forward to the day when the four of us can sit down and play card games and board games together. I think I'll probably declare our Wednesday nights as family game night in a few years. Keep the TV off and just spend time around the kitchen table playing.

SO, I'm hoping that now that my laptop is back up and running, and now that Kaleb has a fairly set bedtime of 7:30, I'll be able to sit down a few days a week and just write a little. Not quite as long as this particular post, but I'll write enough!

-Jenn