Projects and Mother's Day Hugs!

Can someone please tell me where this year is going?? It is already close to the end of May. Callen's last week of school is this week...which means summer! I feel like half of our summer is already planned out; and those weeks with no plans mean lots of pool time. I have the best memories of growing up in Forrester Woods, and spending all day at the pool. I can't wait for the boys to have the same memories and fun times spent at the pool.

May 13: We are working hard to get our windows and trim finished. However, projects are a little slower than normal these days with a few extra hands wanting to help.

Callen working with the wood filler. He really is a good helper. He makes the project last longer, but he really wants to help and knows what needs to be done. Give him a few years, and he will be doing all the projects for Doug.

May 14: Mother's Day! Doug asked me what I wanted to do for Mother's Day, and I told him 'Paint the windows!' Not a very exciting day, but it was actually pretty relaxing. Graham took a nap or swung in the front yard while we painted, and Called played with the neighbors most of the afternoon. We've been playing so much lately that I thought it was more important to work on the house than play for another day.

Big hugs and smiles from G today!

Callen got himself dressed for church...and did a good job if I do say so myself! We were so proud of him today. The little kids choir sang at church today and he went right up there and started singing along. He didn't do all the hand motions, but he was definitely singing. This is from the kid that wouldn't even leave my side when they first started practicing. Cal is very cautious and nervous about being in front of people. He did such a great job!

The littlest helper painting windows

May 16: A day at the zoo

Cal was so excited to bring money to buy food to feed the goats. He is somewhat scared of animals that want to come over and touch him. For him to let the goat eat the food out of his hands was a big breakthrough.

May 17: Graham figured out how to clap!

May 18: These boys love each other. Graham think Callen hangs the moon, and Cal can't be in a bad mood when Graham is around. It is so cute how they play together...most of the time! If Cal is intent on something he is playing, and Graham comes and messes it up...watch out world!

Racing down the driveway

May 19: Cars 3 event in Charlotte

Working on changing a tire!

2 weeks!

I'm behind a week! We went camping last weekend, and didn't get back until Monday. That threw me off and felt like I was running behind all week. So, I figured I would post two weeks at once.

April 29: We had our siding and windows replaced, but did not have the interior of the windows painted (FYI: make sure you order your windows painted inside if they are wood. This is a pain!!) We are just starting to paint the trim and interior...1 window down and 16 to go.

Helping daddy prep the window and trim for painting

May 1: This boy wears me out day after day! He is constantly on the go, and tears the kitchen apart any chance he gets.

Climbing (and hanging) from the spice rack!

May 2: Trip the zoo. Graham was finally interested in the animals...as long as they were moving. He was fascinated by the giraffes.

Love his concentration and excitement for the animals. He was actually mid wave in this pic

May 3: Enjoying a popsicle on the back deck on a hot afternoon

May 4: Callen enjoys going grocery shopping with me. We pretty much always go to Aldi where you have to put a quarter in the buggy to release it. He insists on taking his own quarter, and pushing his own cart now. It's actually working out well when I have a lot of stuff. I give him all the fragile items, and out all the heavy items in my cart.

May 5: Uncle Dave came into town to go camping with us. We took him to Gateway Park to see Callen ride his bike on the mountain bike skills course. We also took his new bike with us to work on riding it. Cal did very well and got the hang of it. It's still too heavy for him, so he has a hard time starting and stopping on his own.

May 6-7: Camping at Black Rock Mountain State Park (I'll have to do a separate post on this another day. Fun trip!)

The first night we were there was FREEZING! Rainy and cold (it got down to around 34 deg that night!). We hung out in the tent for the evening and had a good time...good thing our tent is as big as a tiny house!

The next day we were able to get out and hike a few trails. The weather was beautiful as was the scenery. This is from a trail we hiked around the lake. Doug, Dave, and Callen climbing on the rocks.

May 8: D-U-N, done!

This is Callen after 2 days of camping and going non stop!! Less than 2 minutes in the car after dropping off Dave and spending time in Cumming, GA, at Grandmom's house!

May 9: Unpacking from our trip. Graham is pretty good about keeping himself entertained. I heard him crawling around and making noise, so I wasn't too worried. I figured he was in his room with Callen. When I popped my head in there to check, there was Callen but no Graham. I started going towards the sound of the noise and found him IN the cooler. The cooler had been closed, but G found a way to open it and then climb into it. Thank goodness he opened the lid back up! Cal thought this was the funniest thing, and had to climb in with his brother.

Pure joy!

May 10: This came home from school today. I absolutely love these and think the responses are so cute. This is the first one I have ever gotten, and will cherish it always. Cal's answers are pretty good and seem to be really thought out!

May 11: Cal has been taking gymnastics since January. He loves jumping into the foam pit at the end. His teacher let him run the length of the gym and jump into the pit today. He LOVED it and did it multiple times! Usually he has to stand on the platform and just jump down into the pit.

May 12: Graham is enjoying playing cars and trucks with Cal. He crawls around and pushes the cars around the kitchen and living room. I caught this sweet moment of both boys playing trucks together!

Great Wolf Lodge

Our wolf ears...Callen would not try on the ears for a picture! Of course he wanted to wear them once we got home.

A few weeks ago we spent the night at Great Wolf Lodge. We thought it would be a fun getaway that Callen would for sure enjoy, and Graham would be happy because there would be so much going on around him. We were right! Callen could not have been more ecstatic about everything, and Graham did not rest for a minute (not sure how out of the ordinary that is!!!).

We arrived on Sunday afternoon to a PACKED lobby. I thought going on a Sunday to Monday after all the area spring breaks would be a good idea. We are not fans of huge crowds, so I was shocked when I walked in the lobby to check in. People everywhere! But, once we made our way to the waterpark, it wasn't that bad. Check-in isn't until 4:00, but you can arrive anytime after 11:00am and play in the waterpark as well as playing the entire day of your check-out. We made our way to the waterpark area and got ready for some fun. Callen was only tall enough to ride the small waterslides in the big 'treehouse' structure. I thought he would be more upset he couldn't ride the big ones, but they were on the other side of the waterpark, and pretty well hidden so he didn't realize what he was missing...until the next day when Doug and I took turns riding them!

We had a blast in the waterpark. We played in the treehouse and shot water at everyone, rode the waterslides, played in the wave pool, and spent some time in the big pool just swimming. Callen made his way across the lily pads a few times before swimming like a fish in the big pool. Callen could not have been more excited, and never seemed to take the smile off his face. His favorite part of the park was waiting for the big bucket to dump water down below. By the second day he got brave and wanted to be like all the big kids. He laid on his back below where the water fell, and waited for it to dump on him. I was there the first time and was nervous he was not going to like it. When that water dumped down, it was hard! Cal jumped up right away (I thought he was going to be upset), and had the biggest grin on his face! That boy loves an adventure.

Before shot!

Waiting on Callen to make his way down the waterslide

And he's down!

Callen being dumped on by the bucket...and me being the overprotective parent thinking he was going to come up crying!

You can't tell it from this pic, but G was loving being thrown up in the air

Loving the water (after his safety swim lessons, G has been terrified of the water. I have worked hard to get him back to enjoying the water)

Sweet brothers playing

Cal enjoying the wave pool

Both boys (maybe even Doug too!) loved this toddler area. Cal ran around and played on everything while Graham was happy watching everyone and splashing

Squirting anyone that walked by!

Crossing the lily pads (with a little stabilizing from dad). Cal was determined the grab the net as soon as he was able to reach

Pretty sure this expression was on his face the entire time

Graham loving the waterpark too

SHortly after our room was ready, we went there to take showers and allow the boys time to play. We booked one of the specialty rooms (we did the Wolf Den) which had a little area where a bunk bed was placed, making the kids feel like they were inside a tree. Cal was pretty excited to climb all over as well as make his bed on the top bunk. This provided plenty of entertainment before seeing what else was offered in the hotel. We only made our way to the arcade (it was down the hall from our room). Cal played a few games in which he won enough tickets for a pack of smarties and a top! WooHoo!!!

Climbing!

Graham enjoying the bunk area

Attempting to read in the bunk. Graham was too busy to sit still!

We had a really great time. It was fun to see the boys so happy and excited about everything. There is so much to do there, and we only did a fraction of what there is to offer. They have a kid's club, bowling alley, several shows and character greetings daily, and many other activities for older kids. It was a great little overnight getaway that we all enjoyed!

Baseball and Water Slides

Another fun and busy week!

April 22: Clemson baseball. Tailgated with friends and then headed in to watch a little Clemson baseball.

Cal hanging out with his buddies Adeline and Charlie

April 23-24: Great Wolf Lodge in Charlotte. What a fun time! Cal was so excited to ride the water slides, play in the pool, and get water dumped on him by the big bucket! (I will have to do a separate post on this soon. Too many fun memories not to share!)

A family photo before we all got too wet!

The boys playing and getting soaked

April 25: I finally made it to the Farmer's Market to buy plants for the garden. Graham decided he would help with the planting!

April 26: The Greenville Drive had a 2:00 game, so I thought this would be our best chance to make it to a game this year. When most games don't start until 7:00, it's hard for us to make it since both boys are asleep around 7:30! My dad joined us for the game. We spent most of the time in the playground area, but the boys enjoyed themselves, and Callen actually watched a little of the game.

Callen watching the game and Graham watching all the kids...to avoid smiling at the camera!

April 27: Callen had a super long and busy week, and never really caught up on his sleep from Great Wolf Lodge over the weekend. He fell asleep in the car coming home from Simpsonville, so I carried him in the house. Graham had fallen asleep as well but woke up when I brought him in the house. Graham was screaming when I brought in Cal, so Cal woke up. I set him on the floor to take care of Graham. I look over a few minutes later to see this...

Poor kid so tired that he couldn't even stand up to make it to the couch!

April 28: Strawberry Picking! In my mind, I always have these ideas of how things are going to go. Reality is sooooo different! Callen didn't want to pick strawberries because he didn't want to get his hands dirty (seriously? this kid lives to dig dirt!) so he stood there and ate strawberries faster than Oupa and I could pick them and put them in the bucket!