Update

This week was a bit of everything....

John has been very interested in potty training.  He wants to sit on his little green Ikea potty all day... all day...alllll daaaayy.  We don't have a bathroom on the first floor, so by the time we get upstairs to use it we usually have an accident.  To solve this, we have a little green Ikea potty in the living room.  To be honest, this was not my preferred potty training method.  I wish he would learn to just go to the bathroom in the bathroom!  It really saves a step from the green potty to the regular toilet.  Ryan and I are entertaining the idea of turning Stephen's room into our (temporary) play room.  Then, during the day John can be right next to the bathroom. John doesn't care which potty he is on, he just wants to be on a potty.  :)
We will see how all of this continues to pan out...
John has been regressing with his sleeping lately.  He was sleeping about 12 hours during the night with a 2-3 hour nap.  This week I was lucky if he took a 1 hour nap and he was waking up during the night 3-4 times.  Hmm, I would love for this to just simply go back to how it used to be! ;) haha

Stephen had a bit of a rough week.  : / 
My worst nightmare came true, he rolled off our bed.  Luckily, (and I can't stress that enough) we sold our very tall headboard and just had our mattress on the box spring, laying on the floor.  He cried for a couple minutes, and then just wanted to nurse.  I cried for ... a loong time, called Children's Hospital, iced it and then stayed up watching him for 6 hours.  Oh man, I felt terrible, to say the least.  By the next morning you could barely see where he "bonked" Oy, vey!
He has the little red rough knees!!  The true sign of a baby learning to crawl! SJ has been getting up on all fours and doing major rock sessions.  It is bitter sweet to see him becoming mobile-- exciting to watch him hit his next milestone, but so sad to not have a bitty baby in the house. :)
Stephen did break through his 5th tooth!  He is obsessed with grinding his teeth.  Ryan and I think that is one of the worst sounds... but Stephen thinks it is one of the best sounds. lol He is so proud of getting a reaction out of Ryan and I.

During dinner, Stephen has been wanting to be a part of all the action! We moved John to a real chair, which is proving quite difficult.  His little body is just pretty little for the big chairs.  However, Stephen is loving sitting in John's old chair.  He is reaching for all the plates, cups, silverware, and anything John tries to sneak into his reach/mouth.

Today I took the boys back to the Dr ...again. We had them re-run their blood work and listen to their coughs that are still in full swing.
John weighed 27lbs! :)
The Dr was worried because John is wheezing and she thinks his airways seemed tight and constricted.  Now he is on Albuterol 3x daily and Pulmicort 2x daily.  She also put him on an antibiotic for 10 days for his sinus infection.
Stephen weighed 18lbs! :)
The Dr said Stephen is in the same boat with his breathing.  He is also doing a neb of Albuterol 3x daily and Pulmicort 1x daily.  And an antibiotic for 10 days... sinus infection. 
Stephen's hemoglobin has been low the last couple of draws, so we are watching that as well as his high platelet count. 
( I realize this is boring for you all to read... I just want to have it "on record") :)
Oh, I am dieing to whip these windows open and let these germs fly!!! I guess tonight is not the night to do this because today's high was 1 degree! Brrr...

Pre-School

Our school search begins!

As John is sitting here playing with his flashcards of "Minnesotan Animals" and Stephen is playing with plastic farm animals, I am in the beginning stages of our search for the boys (future) school.  Ryan and I are really looking forward to this process of choosing where best suits our boys!  We realize there are many options out there and want to be sure we do our homework.  I am pretty well versed in what a pre-school classroom should look and feel like, so I am confident we will find a great place for JR and SJ to start their school careers at! :) 
We are looking for a pre-school that will love, nurture, and celebrate being 3, 4, and (finally) 5 years old.  It is important to us that they are treated as (young) children, but not babies.  We want them to get plenty of fresh air, taught how to be a part of a group and connect with Jesus.
Some things we want them to know coming out of pre-school:
*Numbers
*Colors
*Shapes
*Letters
*Songs
Etc...
Life is about balance and too much of a good thing.... just isn't right either! :) 
Play, Laugh Grow ... I can't think of who 'coined' this phrase, but every time I hear it I think, this should sum up your pre-school years!

Places we are planning to visit:
Country Day, Mendota Heights, (January 27th @ 9:15a)
St. Kate's, St. Paul
Waldorf, Maplewood (January 21nd @ 9:30a)
House of Hope, St. Paul
Dodge Nature Center, West St. Paul
St. Mark's, St. Paul

These are in no order, just ones we would like to look at.  We know there will be pluses and minuses to each of them.  There will be places we would feel most comfortable at... but at the end of the day, it is about where John will do best, and where Stephen will do best.  It's all about you boys!! :D

Tomorrow begins our search.... Waldorf 9:30a-12  ... We will let you know what we think!

I would LOVE feedback on where you sent your kids. What you liked about the program or any advice you have! :)

John's Baby, ELMO

I have some picture's that are actually from Christmas, but I still want to share them. 
Since I do a lot of caring for baby Stephen, John has a lot of time to care for his baby, Elmo.  John likes to feed Elmo a bottle while I nurse Stephen, he gives Elmo a tootsie, he rocks Elmo, reads to Elmo, and the list goes on. 
Some of my favorite stories that my parents tell me about my childhood are the ones of me caring for all my dollies.  I love hearing about how I "nursed" them, dressed them, bathed them and so forth.  I really cared for those dolls as if they were real.  I believe this teaches children the gift of compassion, how to care for another, and be nurturing (just to name a few).  These are very practical things, I know.  But important! :)  John, you are a very sweet boy, I love when my daily routines rub off on you! : *

Elmo, having "tootise time" 

John was holding Elmo, so Elmo wouldn't cry.

Again...

Here is John's picture from tonight!  He is starting to learn to to SMILE for the camera! :D

Love you John!

Stephen Joseph is on all fours!!!

Yikes! It is time once again to double check my "baby-proofing"

Today, I caught Stephen up on all fours a couple times.  He happily will do a little rock back and fourth and then go back to the tummy time.  Stephen is a very strong baby, he knows what he wants and will do what he needs to make it happen.  If he sees a toy across the room, he will get it....by any means necessary... rolling, scooting, batting at it, he means business.
 I just can't believe he is in the beginning stages of crawling!! *tear*
By the time I got the camera out, he was not so happy!  I was a tad late on feeding him his "bedtime snack" because Grandma and Papa came to visit!! :D 


Stephen, playing with our doctor kit, and beginning to get a bit ticked off at me flashing my camera at him!

Ok, this looks worse then it really was!  I was trying to get a picture of him on all fours, rocking... but we were not jiving! Sooo, Grandma was going to prop him up and then get back so I could snap a picture....  well, it looks like he was not very fond of our plan!! D:

Stephen eating his FIRST snack before bed! It went pretty well, he seems to really like it.  After the "apple wheel" was gone, all he did for about an hour was grind his front 4 (almost 5) teeth. Ahh!! Nails on a chalkboard!
Thanks Aunt Terri for all of the Gerber treats! :D

Painting the Snow

Last night, Ryan was feeling sick so I wanted to get John out of the house so he could sleep.  I needed to do some overdue shoveling and John and I both needed fresh air!  So, I went to work shoveling and John went to work pushing all the shoveled snow back onto the sidewalk. :)  We had a lot of fun and it was a really nice night to be outside! The snow was so deep that John had a hard time moving around in it.... I needed a way to keep him busy on a little bit of sidewalk. That's when the food coloring, spray bottles and water came into play!
I made a green spray bottle and a blue one.  (I decided yellow wasn't a good color...yellow snow... or red...) Anyways, John had a blast walking up and down the sidewalk spraying the snow green and blue.  John made "art" with his spray bottle, and I wrote names and letters in the snow.  It was fun for us to get outside!! :)  Oh, what a little food coloring and water can do!

Becoming Mobile

Both boys are becoming more mobile!

Since we have been on house arrest, I have noticed that John is going up and down the steps standing up the whole way.  We have very steep steps, so he usually would go down them backwards (which I thought was a good idea!) and then almost "crawl" up them.  He wants to be a grown up when it comes to the steps- he won't let anyone hold his hand, help him or go down backwards anymore. 

Stephen is working on his 5th tooth!!!  He has his bottom 2 and top 2 front teeth.  The top tooth, on the left side of his front teeth, is just about to poke through.  He is actually a pretty good "teether" ...  no diaper rash, no rosy cheeks, and not too much fussing.  He just likes to chomp on everything that goes in his mouth! :)  We are feeding him baby food once a day since the end of December.  He really likes to have the solid food, but still loves nursing.  It has been nice for us both.  If I need to be away from him for a little bit, he can have solids because he doesn't like bottles, at all!!
Stephen has been pushing up on all fours!!!  His army crawling is getting better every day, he is able to scoot off the rug in the living room and maneuver himself to a toy he wants.  I was really shocked the other day when I went to the basement to change the laundry and stir our dinner, when I came back to the living room SJ was off the rug and halfway to the dining room. He is pretty quick on his tummy.  If he has plenty of toys in front of him he will push up on all fours and rock back and forth a little.  Oh boy, I am going to be in trouble soon when he is mobile!! Yikes!

This weekend Ryan and I are finally sick too.  Ryan came home from work early yesterday and went right to bed with a head cold and now today I am feeling it too.  Both, John and Stephen still have their coughs and stuffy noses.  I can't wait to open the windows and let these germs fly!

Not Much to Report

I really have nothing exciting to blog about!
We seem to just be sick, all the time!!  Ryan and I have all these "dreams" of things we want to do with the kids during these cold, snowy winter months... but instead we are busy meeting our insurance deductible. 
We would love to be out sledding, doing winter crafts, making 'creations' in the kitchen, and sipping hot chocolate laughing about all the fun we have been having!  
We haven't done that, but I do know their daily white counts! ;)
Stephen is now running a high fever (103+) and John has been running a lower one (99-102)  And we can't figure out what either of them have... again. So, here we sit, watching Elmo, reading books, doing puzzles and waiting. 
I am so exciting to put the Tylenol away, thermometers away, and be able to be a part of the world happening around us.  I have been to my Thursday nanny job ONE time since Thanksgiving!!  It has been (almost) every Wednesday that the boys come down with a fever, vomiting, etc.   I am sure you can feel my frustration-  I just feel so couped up here. 

Let's just say, our new (awesome) insurance plan from 3M started at just the right time!! :D

Dreaming of a weekend at the cabin, 80 degrees out and the boys playing in the sand.....

Uncle Ryan Comes to Visit

With John being so sick over the holidays, we have been spending a lot of time at home.  We don't want to spread our germs or catch anyone else's! :D

But!  Ryan came into town from Sioux Falls for a job interview! We were so excited to see him- it had been way, way to long!!  We went to have pizza at Davanni's on Grand.  John loved all the attention, Grandma's stickers, and all the pizza he could eat. 

Sara, Ryan and John-  SO excited to have dinner with the FAM! ;D

Stephen and his God-Daddy! (Markie)

I will explain...

When John was sick with his high fever we (made) him constantly have a cool rag on his neck.  At first he fought it the whole time. We tried to bribe him with books, Elmo shows and his tootsie to leave it on his neck.  Then, he completely had a change of heart-  He wouldn't let us take it off to even re-wet it!  Now he wants a rag (or anything) on his head/neck.  Oh John- you are a silly boy!

The boys!

Mike, Ryan, Papa Joe, Ryan, Stephen, Mark, and John

These boys are out numbering the girls.... eeek!  We girls need to stick together! ;D

MINTED.COM

The story of our Christmas New Year's cards...

I ordered our cards from Minted.com back on December 6th!!
They sent me a proof that was missing John's name and there were a couple spelling errors... no problem, that's what a proof is for, right?  I talked to a couple people at the company that day and thought everything was smooth sailing.  I waited for my cards to come in the mail (they were to be overnighted) but, after 5 days I was a little confused as to why I hadn't received them.  I called back, the woman I spoke to said that the order was never sent to "print" ... OF COURSE IT WASN'T!
I finally received our cards on December 17th!  I was pretty bummed because I wanted them out "right away"  But, I was able to settle with a December 21st arrival date to our family and friends! :D

I got the cards and started putting them into the envelopes- excited to get them out!!   After writing notes on them, addresses, and sealing about 1/2 of our Christmas cards I realized that they had made 2 spelling errors (different ones then before) and said "We welcomed our son Joseph!"   WHAT~!?  His name is Stephen Joseph!!! 
I called them back and said, you omitted John's name before, and now Stephen's.... What is going on!?   They told me they would give me a 10% refund on my (expensive) order and correct the mistakes and resend them (overnight).  I was very frustrated, but I didn't have time (or energy) to fight with them about these cards anymore! 
After waiting until December 25th, I was ready to just bag the whole idea!  Christmas was over, the cards were not here and they were a hot mess!  I called back to tell them to just forget it and that I wanted all my money back and no cards.  The woman I talked to said, "Well, that's just fine because we FORGOT TO PRINT THEM!" REALLY!??  I couldn't believe it!
I asked for a manager.... her bright idea was to change the front to "Happy New Year" and correct the spelling errors and over night them (again!) and she would give me a 25% refund.... 
Needless to say....  They STILL screwed up the last copy... that I reluctantly sent out anyways:
Our our dream first home....  NOOO 

I am waiting for my FULL refund and am burnt out on Christmas New Year Cards!

I hope you enjoyed them!! :D LoL

John is 2!!!

Dear John Roman,

We have been so blessed with your smile and love these past two years!  We are also very happy that you are feeling better on your birthday.  These past few days have been very hard on mommy and daddy, and you, as you have been very sick and in and out of the hospital.  You were running a very high fever (104-105 degrees!) and mommy and I were very worried about you!  Mommy and I both had tears in our eyes when the doctors had to put IV's in you and draw your blood, not once, not twice, not three times, but four times!  Seeing you in such pain, and so scared about what was going on was so hard!  Even though you did not know what was going on, and from your end, mommy and daddy looked like the bad guys (holding you down for the nurses) you still just wanted to be held by mommy and daddy.  Your innocence and love just makes our hearts melt.  We love you so, so much and are so lucky to have you as our little boy!
John, here are some of our favorite memories from the past 2 years.

Let's start from the beginning...finding out on Mother's Day that Mom was pregnant was the perfect day to find out!  We were both so excited!  After Mayo Clinic and countless other doctors had told mom that she may never get pregnant, we were able to prove them all wrong.  It was a long slow wait for you to be born.  I was in school at the time and working full time, and mom was also working full time at Nativity, so we kept busy.  Finally the time came to go down to the hospital, and welcome you into the world!  You were born on 12/31/08 - the perfect day for an accountant's son!  The amount of love that we felt when you were born was overwhelming.  You were and are perfect! 

February 2.  You always loved to be held and rocked when you were a baby, and on this night, Mom was rocking you in the living room, and it was the first time that you looked up at her and smiled.  Your smile would prove to be infectious, and you could light up the room anytime you flashed it!

Fast forward a few months, and you became mobile!  We were living in Grandma and Papa's apartment building at the time, and I remember Mom and I sitting on the floor in the living room one night trying to get you to walk.  All of a sudden you did, and you were waling back and forth to Mom and I!  It was so fun, because you had a big smile on your face the whole time and were so proud of yourself.  Little did we know that we now had a mobile destruction unit on our hands that would put any army ranger unit to shame...

Going to the cabin.  Your first summer, we went to Nana and Grandpa's cabin quite a bit to try to get away and relax...well, it didn't always work out so well. You were never really a good sleeper as a baby, and we spent many sleepless nights up holding you.  Even though these were long, hard nights, we would not trade them for anything because it was just more time that we got to spend with you.  I do remember your first fourth of July, and you playing on the beach at the cabin.  It was right around the time that you were first sitting up, and you loved squishing the sand.

November of 2009.  Mom and I held an early college graduation party for me at our apartment and invited Grandma, Papa, Nana, Grandpa, and all of your aunts and uncles.  Little did any of them know that we had something else in mind...when it was time for cake, I lifted up your sweatshirt to reveal a homemade t-shirt that said "I'm going to be a big brother in July 2010!"  You were so excited, but really, you were just excited for the cake that Mom made, and that you would soon have spread all over your face and dining room floor.  You were just thrilled for all the enthusiasm and attention you were getting!!!

Curious George John.  You are such a curious little boy and have always been very interested in how things work.  Not only are you curious, but you are also very intuitive and seem to have a knack of knowing how things work, even if you have never seen them in action.  One thing I remember is a sprinkler that you found outside at Nana's.  You had never seen it before, but after looking at it intently for a moment, you reached out and flicked it so it spun in circles.  Another passion of yours has been books.  For as busy as you are, books are one thing that you will sit down with for hours.  You love to have Mom and Dad read to you, even if it is the same book over and over again.  Your favorite bedtime book is Go Dogs Go! ever since Papa read it to you one night.  We love reading to you, and love that you love books!  Lately, one of your favorite things to do has been to read books to your Elmo doll at night.

As mentioned before, bedtime has never been easy for you.  You slept in bed with Mom and I until you were about 9 months old when you switched to a crib.  Now you are in a big-boy bed and you love it!  Bedtime is my favorite part of the day.  After working a long day, and not seeing you, I love laying down in bed with you.  Our routine goes like this:  First we have to find your tootsie - that is the main priority!  Then, we brush your teeth.  You stand on the toilet and I scrub your pearly whites.  After this, we get in bed and read Go Dog Go! Then we sing a few songs as you drift off to sleep.  Lately you have wanted to hold someones hand while you fall asleep. 

Nana and Grandpa.  Mom and I were very fortunate to have a lot of help from our family when you were a baby.   One of the biggest helps was Nana.  Nana watched you for several months while you were a baby so that Mom and I could go to work.  I was still in school too, so we had a lot to be thankful for for all the help.  You developed a deep love for Nana, and really enjoyed spending time at her house.  Nana kept you busy with all kinds of art projects, playing outside, and reading.  You also love seeing Grandpa over at Nana's house.  You have always been very smiley when Grandpa is around, and he loves showing you new things.  One of the latest things Grandpa has shown you has been a whoopee cushion!  You and Grandpa and I will laugh for hours while you sit on it over and over again, all the time while Nana and Mom just shake their heads - they will never get it!  For Christmas this year, you got a fishing pole and net to take to the cabin.  Grandpa is really excited to teach you how to fish, as it is something he is very passionate about.  We can't wait to see you catch your first fish.

Mama.  After I got my full time job and after Stephen was born, we decided that Mom would stay home with you and SJ and work part-time.  Your Mom has been the best mother you could ask for, and is always ready to give you a hug, read a book to you, or make you some nummies (lunch).  Mom takes you to ECFE two times a week so that you can play with other kids.  You absolutely love going to school with Mom and playing with her there.  She is so dedicated to you and your brother, and you are very lucky to have her.  We both love you so much, and are so happy that you get to stay home with your Mom.

Grandma and Papa.  We were very lucky to be able to buy our first house in St. Paul so that we would be close to both sets of grandparents and Nativity where we hope to send you boys to school.  Our first house on Ashland is only three blocks from Grandma and Papa's house.  You have really enjoyed having them walk over to our house and drop in to see you and SJ.  After I graduated school, I had to take more classes to study for my CPA exam, so that left Mom at home with you and SJ every Tuesday and Thursday night for about 9 months.  Mom took this opportunity to head over to Grandma and Papa's to spend time with them and have dinner.  You enjoyed being able to see them this often and spend this time with them.

NO.  By far your favorite word.  I think you get some sort of satisfaction from saying 'No!'  No is your answer to pretty much everything these days.  When we were in the hospital recently, we were asking you what kind of food you wanted after we left or what you wanted to do- it went something like this:  "John, do you want some french fries?"..."no"..."Do you want some ice-cream?"..."no"...."Do you want to see Nana?"..."no"...."Do you saying anything other than no"...."no".    We do have to admit John, that it is quite cute.

Trying to sum up these past two years is not easy, as there are so many memories.  You are such a sweet boy, and so loving.  Mom and I are so blessed to have you as our son, and we look forward to many more memories with you!  We love you John!  Happy 2nd birthday buddy!

Love Mom and Dad

3 YEARS AND COUNTING

December 28, 2007
Ryan and I got married at Nativity in St. Paul and celebrated all night at the Landmark Center.  Ryan and I say it all the time- that was our favorite day ever!  We had the time of our life that day, it was everything I could have ever dreamt up. It was romantic, fancy, family friendly, crisp and comfortable.  The ultimate celebration of two families coming together- forever!

Jana and Steve                                        Joe ad Mitzi
Thank you to our moms and dads for making our wedding every dream come true!! Thank you.

We had ALL kids that came to the wedding under age 12 proceed down the aisle carring white roses to the altar.  Away in a Manger was being sang, beautiful!



Our celebrants; Bishop Lee Piche, Fr. Dick osc., and Bishop Peter Christensen


Grandma Evie Patrick  and Grandma Jackie and Grandpa John Brown


Grandma Glennie Ann Lais  and Grandpa and Grandma Kreuser


Men in Black!  All the men in our wedding (minus the dads)

 
The Ladies! Yikes, we were having SO much fun!!







Something...
Old: My Baby ring that my parents gave to me on my wedding day. 
New:  My Dress!
Borrowed: Jana's pearl necklace
Blue: A gift from Madeline Shinbach, she embroidered on a piece of lace ,
"Caroline Lais marries Ryan Patrick December 28th, 2007" The words were in blue and my mom sewed it into my dress the morning of our wedding.

Attended: 420 people
Cake: six tier all white! and Dilly Bars served later in the evening! :D
Photography by Andrew Vick, he does AMAZING work!!!  I would recommend only him!

Oh, I could go on forever!!  Thank you Ryan for an amazing 3 years! (9 years together!)  You are my rock, soul mate and I couldn't imagine life without you. Cheers to forever, together!
God has blessed our marriage.

Patrick Family Christmas Dinner

After we finished Christmas morning at our house, we put the boys down for a nap (OK, we had a family nap! haha)
We headed over to Jana and Steve's around 2:30.  Ryan took about 4 loads of gifts, gear, food and children out to the truck.  ALL I was supposed to remember to bring when I came out was the diaper bag with clean clothes for the boys and diapers.  Well, I forgot it!! : /  Usually, it wouldn't be a  huge deal, but we wanted everyone to see how cute the boys were in their jammies, so we didn't change them!  We were going to right after getting to G&G Patrick's.  OOPS!
John was in full swing present mode!!  I hate to admit it, but he had the greedy-gimmies.  It is hard as a parent to watch your child 'want' gifts so badly-- because, that is not the point of Christmas.  On the flip side, he is not old enough to completely understand the religious aspect of it either... Anyways, needless to say, he opened each and every gift that was given or received that afternoon. 

Alana made Ryan and I a wedding scrapbook!  I started one when I was pregnant with John... well, it never got finished!  Thank you Alana for making us one- We love it!! :D

 Auntie Alana and Auntie Lauren with Stephen.... who smelt like baby barf.  Sorry, that was my fault!

Ryan and I got John a fishing pole for at the cabin!!  We didn't make it up there much last summer because John was at a busy age, I was pregnant/Stephen was born and Ryan was studying for his CPA exams...

BUT this summer, we ARE going to be there a lot! :D  Get ready Patrick's! haha

And, now John will be ready to catch his first fish- I can't wait! (oh, no am am craving summer sun, sand, sunscreen smell and lemonade- shoot!) ;D

Smiley SJ with Aunt Lauren and Nana in the background

Party!!  I just love this picture!!

Hmm... What is in here..... It's a gift... must be for me! (umm, nope!)

We were showered with gifts at the Patrick's-  I can't wait to cook with my new pots and pans and Ryan got running boards for his truck!  The boys got toys, tee shirts and books.  Thank you Lauren, Alana, Jana and Steve for all the gifts! 

After the present high, we had a yummy roast with homemade bread and a salad.  The boys were quickly melting but we tried to sneak in a game of Christmas trivia- Lauren did a great job! Gold star for you Lauren! :D

Until next Christmas!!  .....

Waking up Christmas Morning

****   NOT FOR SMALL CHILDREN!  ****  ** (NON BELIEVERS ONLY) **

We got home from mass and carried our sleeping red elfs up to their beds.  Then, the fun began!!

Ryan and I couldn't believe how much fun we would have setting up the house for Christmas morning.  We got out lights to put on our barren tree, brought the gifts downstairs and put them under the tree and then we got to set-up the *Santa-gifts.  We had an adult beverage, made Lego towers, stocked the play kitchen and reminisced about all of our favorite childhood Christmas memories.  Around 1am we realized that we could go on for hours about our past 25 Christmas' and our dreams for our future ones.  ...The boys would be up in a short 6 hours! :D



Our tree, all ready for morning. 2010

 Christmas Morning!!  
John woke up bright and early, (Stephen slept in- go figure!)  So, we had to let John downstairs... how can you keep an almost two year old from presents! :D
I videoed the whole thing... but I can't figure out how to get it on to this blog...hmm??

The first thing John ran to was the Kitchen!  ....And right for the Coke!

John, "AHhh!"  (Yep, he is my boy!) :D

Next, the french fries....

John, "Num, Nummy!"  (Yep, he is Ryan's boy too!!)

And finished it off with an ice cream cone! haha

John played with his kitchen for a bit and opened a couple books while we waited for Stephen to wake up.  John was a very calm patient gift opener at home.  BUT when we were at our other Christmas celebrations, he was frantic, couldn't rip fast enough and needed to open every gift! 

Look Stephen, this is a green gift which means it is for you... 

 I'll open it!! :D

And throw it around, just to be sure the football works! haha

Stephen is almost 7 months here-  watching open gifts.

John is almost 2 here and is wearing his Elmo slippers!

Yaay!  A smile caught on camera from John!!!!

These boys are taking a break from gift opening for breakfast.  Ryan requested french toast, and I had yet to make successful french toast.  I was a bit worried... but it was WONDERFUL! :D We had yummy french toast and bacon with OJ for Christmas morning. 

The boys CAUGHT holding hands!!!  John loves to hold hands... and so he snatched Stephen's for a quick hold.  Gotta love brothers!

* At our house, we are doing things a little different then most families do.  We are having the "big" (or main) gift be from Santa and then the little ones are from Ryan and I.  We do not wrap the gift from Santa either. 

The gifts from Ryan and I are books, puzzles... things of this nature.

Christmas Eve Mass

 After Christmas Eve at Patty and Dan's in Jordan, we went to church at St. Joseph's in West Paint Paul for their 10pm (midnight) mass.  The boys were very well behaved!  It was a beautiful mass. 
At one point when John was loosing it a bit, I took him into the small chapel where there was a Manger scene in front of the alter.  We walked VERY slowly up to the alter and John laid down on his belly to get a better look at what was happening in the stable.  He was awe struck- He just kept saying, "Oooohh" in amazement.  At one point, he reached out and held Joseph's hand that was stretched out. 
It was just a perfect moment; the smell of pine and poinsettias, white lights twinkling, and John laying respectfully at the feet of the manger scene.  This one of my favorite church memories I have-  Beautiful!

Kreuser Christmas

Christmas Eve

So much to write about and so many pictures... you have been warned! :D

Here is John with Great Grandma Kreuser.  John ate dinner with with her, however he quickly found the dessert table that were conveniently at his eye level!  He sampled....umm... everything!  John had fudge, turtles, peanut butter cups, Ritz PB chocolate covered yummy things, and the list goes on... Hey! it is only Christmas once a year! ;D

Stephen (7mo) and his cousin Jack (10 mo)

These two boys had a ball playing with their new toys! Thank you Connie for getting the boys new trucks!!

John in the basement. (AKA Man Cave)

John spent the rest of the night being chased (and loving every minute of it) by my cousins; Lauren, Grace, Hailey and Katie! Thanks girls!  They sang Christmas carols and took endless pictures of him.

Stephen needing a change of everything, clothes and diaper...
everyone loves a fresh baby! :D

Lisa and Rachel loving up Stephen!

Carefully opening ...
everything he could get his paws on!

Cousin Rachel with tired Stephen!  :D

And with Grandma Mitty!

Our little Elf, John!  Ryan and I are starting a tradition with our boys- Christmas PJs!  We found these at BabiesRUs and they were super cute on! Both boys got a pair to wear home from Jordan.  Gotta love the long-john hat!! <3