6 years!

My hubby and I celebrated our 6 year wedding anniversary this past weekend! 

We dropped the kiddos off at the grandparents house, and headed to Baton Rouge for the night.

We went shopping at the Mall of Louisiana, and then headed to Copelands to eat!

(If you're ever in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, or Slidell, eat at Copelands!!)

We had delicious food, and AMAZING cheesecake!

After dinner, we rolled ourselves, haha just kidding, we drove about a minute to the movies to see when Iron Man 2 played. Lucky for us it was playing in 10 minutes, so we got our tickets and went in.

It was a GREAT movie. I loved it just as much as the first one! We headed to Super Target for a late night shopping trip (ok only 1000, but we don't shop that late ever with our kiddos!), and then went back to the hotel to rest up for the next day at the waterpark!

We didn't wake up til' 830 the next morning, wow it was awesome to sleep in, but I actually had to force myself to do it! LOL  We got to Blue Bayou right when it opened at 10am, and had a BLAST. It was so much fun! We had been to a waterpark together with the kids in Germany, but never been to an outdoors one together where we could just go ride whatever, whenever! It was so fun!

Wish I would have take more pics of the rides, but was too busy having too much fun!! 

I got my workout in too, there were soooo many stairs! LOL

We did melt a little everytime we passed the kids area, it's so neat and we kept talking about how we couldn't wait to bring the kids with us next time, and play with them. We enjoyed just being together and goofing off together with no big responsibilities, it was so much fun.

We headed back to get the kids around 330, but didn't actually get there until 7ish because of and insane detour that costed us 2 hours. It was horrible, but we did have lots of laughs about it.

We were so happy to be back with our kiddos, we even went for a swim right after eating because they were begging us to go with them. They are too cute. We are beyond grateful for parents that are so willing to watch our kids so we could celebrate, they are awesome!

I'm so happy I married my best friend. Wouldn't know what I'd do without him!

And we have some pretty cute kiddos too. I'm so blessed.

Why I take so many pictures...

Because I never want to forget..

watching my babies learn things from each other..

the sound of Ayden's little voice saying, "shave, shave!"

Caleb's hilarious giggles over little wonders.

How much joy Cbear gets out of taking a bath with the jets in Momma's tub.

Tiny little feet, they are growing too quickly!

Chubby little hands.

Squishable, squeezable cheeks on my sweet sleeping toddler..

and the same for my little boy, who isn't so much a toddler anymore...

And these photos, they help me remember these things. I cherish ALL of them.

Geez, the time just keeps flying. Make it stop!

Merry Christmas!

We've been busy!

Traveling to spend time with family.

Baking.

Making.

Learning.

Anticipating.

Loving.

We wouldn't have our "busy-ness" any other way.

Remember the Reason for the season, Jesus Christ. We are so thankful God sent his only son to be born to die. Wishing you and yours a Merry Christmas from us, the Phillips family.

Christmas Eve Traditions!

We are trying to instill lots of traditions each year with the boys for them to look forward to. A tradition in my family while I was growing up was always going light looking on Christmas Eve, usually after the Christmas Eve Service at church. We are still church hunting here, and we didn't have a service to go to, so after Darryl got home from work, we ordered a couple of stuffed crust pizzas from Pizza hut, and watched the Polar Express! Then we hopped in the truck and went light looking! That was alot of fun with the boys, and we came across one house that was SO bright! Frustrating that not that many people decorate any more though. Where's the Christmas spirit? Ugh. Anyway, when we got home the boys got to open one present, and it was a bath toy for both of them. A boat from the show Thomas the train, and it goes when you pull the pull string. They got in the bath to play with them and then they were OUT! Caleb fell asleep on Daddy, and Daddy was fading too. (he tends to fall asleep pretty easy, haha)

Unbeknownst to the boys..we had a couple of extra special "guests" visiting for Christmas!! They are going to be SO excited!!!! :)

Thankfulness.

I'm thankful. I promise. But it's been SO very busy around here, I just haven't had time to blog about it!! And even though I really don't have time now because I have a huge pile of laundry to do, and floors to vacuum, and toilets to clean, I'm making time. Because if I don't, it'll be Christmas before I do, and I cannot let Christmas come without being able to share what I'm thankful for.

I'm thankful for..

*the cross, and for Jesus who died on the cross to save me from Hell.

*the Bible. It's the only book I have time for these days, and really the only one that matters.

*an amazing husband who supports me and loves me without fail.

*the 2 most amazing, wonderful, handsome, curious, witty boys on the planet. I love my bubbies.

*an awesome Mom & Dad who have taught me so much and have become my very close friends, they are awesome Grandparents too.

*a hilarious brother. He is such a fun person to be around and I look forward to all the moments we get together. He always has a good attitude no matter what. I'm thankful for his wife and kids too. They are SO cute and I just love hanging out with Sarah.

*wonderful inlaws who are always there for us, they are amazing grandparents too.

*the ability to drive 2.5 hours to see those grandparents. That's such a blessing. Just a year ago we'd have to take a 12 hour flight plus layovers.

*for friendships. I've made so many amazing friends in Germany and here back home. I cherish every one of them, and miss my friends I left behind!

*for laughter. It's what makes me tick. I love to laugh, and I love to be with people who love to laugh. It's just who I am.

*tickle fights. They make the bubbies dimples show. And I love their dimples.

*Freedom fighters. All of the ones past and present fighting for our freedom. They are heroes. Darryl's brother just got back from Iraq in September, I'm so glad he made it home safely We're so grateful for his service.

*Darryl's sister Julie. She's my sis, and I love her. She's grown so much in the time since I've known her, and I'm so glad to be able to call her a close friend.

* an awesome church family in Slidell who treats us as if we were never gone every time we go back.

*my bestie, Lisa. She moved to Cali this year but I got 2 months with her before she left and got to meet her baby girl, Aubrey. She's sooo cute. Lisa's been my best friend since best friends mattered. I miss and love my Wheeza!

*Our beautiful home! We were so blessed to be able to have bought our first home this year. We love it so much and so do the boys.

*webcams. They make smiles, and googly eyes, and all that snazzy stuff happen. When we were in Germany it's the only real way the boys knew their grandparents. And now I get to see Aubrey in them too! :) Score.

*Urgent care. Because even if they can't live up to their name, they still get the job done and make my bubbies better.

*Amoxicillan. It makes the double ear infections go away.

*My camera. Because I'd die if I couldn't capture these memories in still form. I want to remember how little the bubbies were, and how funny Ayden looked when he spilled the rice krispies all over the floor. Or remembering the look of amazement on Cbear's face when he was picking up acorns off of the ground. Those are things we could easily forget, but I won't, and I'm so glad I won't.

*A constant mess to clean. Because it means my boys can run around an be boys. There isn't an illness taking over their bodies, they are just healthy little, rambunctious boys who love to get into things. And I can handle that. :)

*Traveling. The chance to be able to travel Europe was amazing and I wouldn't change the 4 years we lived there for anything. I loved seeing the Eiffel Tower, Coliseum, and Berlin Wall. There were soooo many things we got to see and I hope to see more some day.

*Computers and Internet. I just don't even know how I'd live without it. It makes so much possible!

*STORES! Clothing, grocery, craft, you name it! After 4 years of not getting to shop much in Germany, I am surrounded by awesome stores 5 minutes from my house!! Good for me! Not so good for Darryl. ;)

*The moon. I love looking at the moon, and so does my Ayden. Sometimes when I'm driving at night and there's a beautiful moon I won't go home right away, but I'll take the long route and just stare at the moon. It's an amazing thing.

*books. The boys love em', and I do too. I just wonder when I'll get the chance to read one without pictures again.. haha.

*the ability to have Thanksgiving at our new home with my parents, my brother and Sarah and 3 kids, Darryl's parents and sister, his brother and wife and 2 kids, and us and our 2 kids! It was crazy but SO fun. Michael introduced us to a new game and I love it. I think Darryl and I are officially addicted to it. The grandparents had a blast making memories too. It was a great time.

*Christmas music. We LOVE Christmas music. It makes me all warm inside, and I can't stop playing it right now!

*Hot cuckoo coffee (hot chocolate) Because my boys love it, and so do I. I despise coffee, but I can down some hot cuckoo coffee!

There's so much more, but I'm out of time. You see, I'm behind on uploading pictures, doing laundry, cleaning floors, and vacuuming. I also have to start school back up with Caleb tomorrow, and I need to hop on the treadmill and run 2 miles. I have lunges and squats to do, and also have a 2 year old with a double ear infection to put down for a nap. My ears, head, and throat are also killing me, but who has time for that, you know? And I'm thankful for ALL of it. So, if you don't get by now why I haven't updated, you probably never will. But I will try to do it more, k?

I'm so very blessed and thankful for it.

~Erin

Friday funnies...or make that Wednesday?

I had originally started writing this last Friday, but I never had time to finish it (hence the title) because I'm constantly doing something around the house. LOL So, I'm finally going to finish it now!

Over the past couple of weeks, I've been writing down the funny/cute things the boys say because I don't always have time or remember to blog when they say them. I do however have time to write them down in a notebook that I'm sure I'll treasure when they are older. So without further ado...

10-28-09-- Caleb got in trouble for doing something he wasn't supposed to be doing, but didn't know that I was looking. When I went into his room, I was talking to him about the fact that even though I am not always there to see what he does, that God is everywhere and he can see everything that Caleb does, the good and the bad. Caleb was shocked (even though I've told him these things before) and he says, "Well Mommy, does God have big eyes?" Haha so cute.

10-29-09-- Caleb, and I quote,"Mickey is a butthead". Uhh. Don't ask.

That day I was also getting onto Caleb, and had squatted down to his level to get onto him. While I'm in the middle of that, he looks straight at me without smiling, and says "You have GREEN eyes!!" Was he even listening? haha

That night I was telling Darryl the chores Caleb does around the house. I was saying how he takes out the big pieces of trash (milk cartons, Juice bottles) to the trashcan in the backyard, brushes his teeth, gets dressed, and makes his bed. Right then Caleb piped in and said, "And I nap too!" Geez I wish that chore carried into adulthood! ;)

Ayden's funny words lately are as follows: "Paaaah" (Pops) That word has been around for awhile, I've just never blogged about how cute it sounds when he says it. "Nain Nain" (Nan Nan) "Caaahmo"- Cosmo, "Ixiiieee"- (Dixie), Miiimiii (Mimi) Payeaah (Pa J), swaaaang (swing), struuck (truck) waah (wet) pee potty all done! and last but not least "Baaahblle" (Bible). He's so cute.

11-4-09 Our electricity randomly went out for about 4 hours. When it finally came back on Caleb was so happy, and he gave me some amazing words of advice. He said, "You see Mommy, you just gotta have patience, and the lights will come back one!" LOL What a smart little boy. I so needed to hear that that day too.

11-5-09 Ayden was playing with their diner that they have and acting like he was brewing coffee. I went in there to play with him and asked him to pour me a cup of his freshly brewed coffee. He does that , but then quickly grabs the cup and says"Paaah" (Pops) I guess that cup was reserved for Pops! :)

I wrote these down in my little book so I'd remember them, and I'm glad I did because I'm just now getting to blogging about it days and weeks later! LOL It's been so busy around here, but very good! I'll be blogging soon about all the fall festivities that recently took place, there's been alot and it's been so fun.

Are you happy God made us?

This was the question Caleb (4) asked me today while we were outside on our back porch eating our lunch together. It was so cute. I, of course, said yes. And then he went on to ask if I was happy God made Ayden, and Daddy, Dixie, Cosmo, Wesley, Justin, Pops, Nan, Dodo, Mimi, Pa J, Juji, and the list went on and on. Then he said, You know, Mommy, God made everybody!

Too cute.

Today was our first day of Abeka K4. It went really well, and I think we are going to love it! Please pray for the boys though, they are starting to cough and wheeze, and we've been blessed with them not being sick for awhile, but we have such a busy week ahead that we don't have time for sickness! :)

Chilly mornings, conversation, and a bench...oh and our "coffee"

Fall is definitely here, and we have had some chilly mornings of late. I bought some hot chocolate mix last time I got groceries. I *heart* hot chocolate. I love the smell of coffee, but despise the taste. Anyway, every morning around 630 Caleb comes & climbs into my bed and usually zonks out for another hour or so. When he wakes up, I make him & I both a cup of hot chocolate and we sit on the bench near the window and drink it and talk about random nonsense.

This morning he was telling me how we have 3 boys (Daddy, Caleb, & Ayden) in the house and 2 girls (Me & Dixie). Then he went on to say..

Mommy, I drink coffee now, because I'm big.

Me: Well honey, it's not coffee, it's hot chocolate or you can even call it hot cocoa. And yes, you are big.

Caleb: No mommy, it's hot cuckoo coffee.

Me: Ok, Caleb, that sounds good to me. :)

So around 7am every morning, Caleb & I will be enjoying awesome conversation, and a cup of hot cuckoo coffee while sitting on our bench. :)

Troublesome Tuesdays!

I thought I'd continue on in our Troublesome Tuesdays from last week. Truth is, the boys get in to something every day, and they make messes every day, but I don't have time to blog about it so just one day of the week I'll catch it all up for you! :)

This particular incedent happened today on a Tuesday! I had made the boys lunch. We recently got these litte stool chairs to put on the other side of the counter by the sink where there's extra space to eat a snack or just hang out right there. I don't have a pic of it up yet, but here's the sink and you'll see the extra counter space.

And here's the desk where I'm at right now typing this. Yes, I do think it's a rather lovely spot. :)

I don't know about you, but when I go to a friends house we always end up hanging out in the kitchen and talking there, probably because that's where a majority of the cooking/cleaning goes down. So anyway, back to the original picture...

Curious Boys. Eating lunch. On stools. Near sink. Uh oh.

Ayden had about finished his lunch and was on the stool nearest the sprayer. I walked to the room for literally 5 seconds to put a few clothes away and I hear the slightest spraying sound. It was as if someone was using the sprayer on the sink to...

Oh no he did NOT just do that. Yep, yep he did.

He turned on the sprayer and aimed at my freshly painted red kitchen wall and went for it! The floor was soaked. (thankfully it's cement!) My walls were soaked. Ayden was dry. And smiling. Stinker.

All I want to know is, how is he so cute even when being punished? Ahhh. Sweet, curious, mischeivous, little Ayden.

Troublesome Tuesdays..

So unpacking a house while raising a 2 year old & a 4 year old takes work. Hard work. And if you're like me, the house needs to be clean at the same time while you're trying to unpack everything, or you go nuts. I don't like things that are unorganized, and a couple times during this process Darryl & I have just wanted to take all the unopened boxes in the garage that we still have to go through, and chunk them out to the curb. Yet, we're sensible. We haven't done that. It's taking awhile to get everything done, but we are getting there! We have quite a few projects lined up to do, but I want all the clutter out first. :) Anyway, the boys are loving their new home. The backyard is huge and they really love that. But on rainy days like this one, it's not so fun for them. So morning bathtime is a must, lets them play in the water for a bit and gives me time to mop my floors! Or so I thought.. Ayden decided today was a good day to drench the floor in water. Who cares? Mom was going to mop it anyway right? Uh, yeah I guess.. Anyway after cleaning that up and getting them out of the bath, they picked out their clothes (and Caleb matches so well these days, Ayden not so much..) and I was in the room picking up the jammies to bring them to the laundry room. Well, mind you, I had just mopped the floors in the living room, dining room, and entryway, and closed the doors to the living room so the boys could only stay in the hallway, their room, bathroom, and toy room. Ayden decided that he would mop those floors for me! So nice. It was a nice thought but ahh..the water. HE had only gotten the mop onto the floor once but geez, he's quick! So I proceeded to clean that up, and decided to make them lunch. I decided we all needed a little downtime, so I asked Caleb to get a blanket out of the trunk and make it really nice looking on the floor in the living room. He did a really good job, and I made them sandwiches with Funyuns, red grapes, a granola bar, and a box of juicy juice. They loved the picnic and I did too. And yep..you guessed it, I have crumbs on my freshly mopped floor, even a few little juice spills, and I don't really care. Because I also have 2 little, healthy, amazing boys who thought it was the coolest thing ever to have mommy sit on a blanket and eat lunch with them. We had fun conversation and just that, with NO tv on and no unpacking or cleaning or anything of the sort. :) I'm sure there will be more messes made today, just like every other day, but it'll be ok because boys will be boys, and I happen to loooove mine to death. :)

PS-- Naptime=sweeping/lysoling/laundry time! hehe

Ayden turns 2!!

Yes, little Ay is 2 years old! Time flies I swear. It was an awesome birthday since we got to spend it with Daddy in Oklahoma City! We got up and headed to the city zoo, and both boys loved it. Then we headed home and the boys napped while I made Ayden's cake. It of course had to be Mickey Mouse Clubhouse since Ayden is obsessed with Mickey! We didn't have much to work with since Darryl's apartment was limited with the things he had, but we really worked it out! We also had Ayden's fave meal (pizza!) for dinner, so he had an amazing day. He got a big machine gun and a Mickey mouse train & tracks for his presents. He loved them both. We also got Caleb a machine gun so they can play together. They both look so cute playing with them! After we ate the pizza we headed to the splashpad at the park close to the apartment and the boys had a blast. Then we headed back to the apartment for cake! Ayden looked SO cute blowing out his candles, and he did it perfectly!! We had some minor incidents that day, like Ayden taking a tumble down the stairs at the apartment, and Caleb breaking the window with his butt, nonetheless it was an awesome day of celebration for our amazing, witty, handsome, funny, sweet Ayden. I'm so thankful to have him in our lives!

20 Euro Cents..

So 2 weeks ago tonight, we had a totally scary thing happen with Ayden. I had laid him down to change his diaper when I noticed him fiddling around with something in his mouth. When he opened it I saw that it was a coin, so I freaked out and lifted him up and tried to swoop it out but I was too late. He started choking, which was like the worst minute of my life but finally got it down. He gagged a few more times after that on the way to the ER, but when we got there he was fine. We got an xray about an hour later and the coin was definitely there, but bigger than we thought! We were thinking it was a penny but I wasn't sure because I didn't get a good look. Anyway, this whole time throughout these 2 weeks I've had to check every poopy diaper for coinc and found nothing. I started freaking out because I was scared it'd gotten lodged or something, but alas, it was found in his diaper tonight and it was 20 euro cents, which is like the size of a nickel! LOL I'll take a pic soon but just had to share! I'm glad we got through our first choking experience!

sweet Ay

So since I posted about Caleb, I figured I should make a post about Ayden. Ay is such a sweet little boy, but man does he have a stubborn streak! LOL He is definitely getting brave about sticking up for himself when it comes to Caleb, it is pretty hilarious. He also has the cutest smile EVER. It's so sweet and sometimes he laughs or smiles when he should be in trouble and I have the hardest time getting mad at him. He says SO many words now I cannot even keep up. He's in love with his gacki (blanket) and won't sleep without it. He wants to do everything Caleb does and follows him everywhere. He blows kisses when he's ready to take a nap and at nighttime, and he ADORES brushing his teeth,taking baths, and swimming in the pool. He also LOVES playdough and anything Thomas! I really love this age!

Naptime sweetness.

The boys are so sweet when they go down for their naps in the afternoon. I usually put Ayden down around 1pm and then Caleb & I "do school. But anyway, when I put Ayden down I said Love you and he said "me na" which is him trying to say love you. Then everytime I lay him down with his blanket he laughs and gets so happy and excited and then looks at me through his crib rails and smiles. It's SO sweet!

Then Caleb & I went downstairs and he did lots of tracing of letters and numbers, and we went through a book about dinosaurs that we got from the library and he was so interested in it. It was fun. Then we headed upstairs and for naptime I always lay down with him for like 10 minutes until he falls asleep, otherwise he'll just play and not go to sleep. So I was laying down with him and he kept saying "I love you mommy", and I would say "I love you too buddy" and then he'd say "I love you too Mommy, honey." LOL It was SOOO sweet. I'm so glad I get to be home with them and have these memories with my babies!

Something sooo cute...

So tonight Darryl was talking to Caleb about when he finds the girl for him. Just joking around with him about it. And he was saying, you'll find one special girl, and Caleb quickly interrupted and said, "No Daddy, I'll have 2 girls, I need 2 girls." And Darryl was like, no buddy you only need one, and Caleb goes on to say, "But I need my mommy too!" I chimed in with a HUGE grin on my face and said, "That's right bubba, you always need your momma!" :) I know this won't always be the case, but it's nice to know that for right now he needs his momma. :)

What happens when you tickle Ayden with a feather...

Hahaha, he's sooo cute!