all about Beck

things he's saying:

He recently asked me if I could "shake my bottom like the machine on the snow plow"... which turned out to be waggling it back and forth.  The idea came from one of his truck shows and he tried to explain it to me, but I didn't quite understand.

His new thing lately is telling me to "be happy."  "Be happy mom."  Or "let me see your smile/happy face."  Kind of annoying since it's usually when he's being disciplined or I'm just being serious about something, but also a good reminder.

This is old, but what he used to say after he pooped in his diaper:

B (crying b/c he knows he's not supposed poop in his diaper):  I'm sorry for my poop mom!

Me:  You don't have to be sorry for your poop, just go in the potty.

B:  I'm sorry mom!

B (throwing his arms around my neck):  I forgive you!

What he's been calling people that he's frustrated at:  a scaby (as in skae-be) dog.  Used in a sentence:  

"Stop that you scaby dog"... directed at Creighton when he tried to take Beck's book.  As first I thought he made it up and then realized he got it from a pirate story on his leap reader.  Still not sure how I feel about it.  I'm thinking it's definitely derogatory.  

What he says to toys or other inanimate objects he's frustrated at:  "you're making me crazy!"

"Hanitizer" which is his word for hand sanitizer.  Makes sense to me.

CReighTon.  (overly emphasizes the "CR" and the "Ton")... anytime he disapproves of Creighton's actions.

what he's playing:

Work.  He likes to pretend that he's a worker (which isn't really a new thing for him).  This might mean carrying around a tool box, digging in dirt, putting things in and out of a dump truck, or moving around sticks.  Sometimes it's even something that's actual productive, like sweeping up his mess or helping me dust.  The other day it meant dumping trash into the trash can, picking it back up out of the trash can (like a crane) and putting it back in his cardboard box... and doing it all again.  He even told me to ask him how is day was going and responded, "Great.  Works great.  I'm working hard."  I even got to job shadow him and learn Exactly how he did his hard job.  I made the mistake of describing each piece of trash as he pick it up and had to do that several times in a row.  :)

Pretend.  He's good at talking to himself and playing pretend.  The other day he said he was going to return some of his books to the library and they ended up in my boots.  That works.

Anything that makes Creighton laugh, which is usually chase or dumping a bunch of toys or knocking over kleenex boxes.  Yes, this means the boys have been making a lot of messes lately!

the other night we out for a family dinner and looked over to find Beck making a pencil mustache  :)

another vacation

So about a month after we went to AZ (which puts us into the middle of March) we were due for another vacation and traveled to the other side of the country to Miami, FL with Chad's fam.

It's was fun to enjoy the beautiful weather (that we didn't get to relax in as much as we would've liked in AZ... not sure why ;)) and stayed in a place right on the beach.  Having a pool and a beach right out your back door was great for the kiddos... and the adults.  While the kids napped in the afternoon we could still be outside and didn't feel like we were missing out by needing to be inside close to the kids.

Each day was pretty similar, with some combo of pool/beach in the morning, then lunch, then the adults enjoying more outside time while the kids slept.... with some outdoor games and wave crashing in there.  Each of the married kids got a date night out too, which was great.  Chad and I went down to south beach and took in the variety of people and unique beach culture that surrounded us.

It really is a different world down there.  People riding home from the beach at 8pm on a Monday.  Kids walking home from school on the beach path.  Every night feels like a weekend since there are so many people out and about.  It was kind of refreshing and kind of odd at the same time... like people really live like that?!

Creighton looking his finest for the camera

most of my pics of the boys look something like this... head down and playing in the sand. 

it was so nice to have beach chairs with very comfy cushions ready for us at the beach.  that little blue building was our home for the week.

they love having the sun in their eyes  :)

the "older cousins"

Beckham being a "worker" and fixing the toilet paper roll.  He was so concerned about it there was no time to pull up his underwear.  :)

view from our balcony 

Arizona

We took a family trip out to AZ to visit one of our favorite families... the Beer clan.  (What is a clan?  I think I can call them that since there are 6 of them, with 4 of them being very little!)

It's always great to catch up with friends, especially when it's in a place that's 50 degrees warmer than the place you left!  The trip was a good combination of fun, relaxing time at home, play time for the kids, and of course a project tackled by Brandy and I.  The project was supposed to be the girls bedroom but instead we went through all the kids clothes and put away winter and got out summer... b/c you know, it's summer-like in some parts of the nation.  But it turns out that I love to to through clothes and organize them (big surprise right?!).

So... a little recap of our agenda, just so I can remember all the fun we had... in case the camera didn't capture it.

Thursday night:  Arrive and have a late dinner with Adam & Renee after the kids are in bed (yes, this means we were eating dinner at like 11pm our time :)).  Adam is the pastor of Seth & Brandy's church and their good friends that we met the last time we went to AZ.  Stay up talking and go to bed too late and wake up too early with kids who are still on IN time.

Friday:  The hard-working dads work a short day while we stay home with the kiddos.  The adults get away for a hike and sushi in the evening while a very kind neighbor watches the kids.  Always love to get a hike in while we're out there, which gets harder the more kids you have.

Saturday:  Have a b-day party for Annaika at the playground and meet some more of Seth & Brandy's friends.  Beck got his greatly anticipated ride in the Ford F-150 and turned out to be a little bit of a bad driver. :)  The adults made homemade chicken curry after the kids went to bed in a nice and peaceful kitchen.

Sunday:  Church and then lunch at Joe's Farm Grill, one of our favorites out there.  The food's great and the setting is farm-ish with picnic tables outside to dine at.. perfect atmosphere for kids.  The adults got some time away again and went out for tacos at night.

Monday:  Pretty low-key day.  B and I started our clothes project and Chad relaxed before his flight home.  Took the kids on a bike ride along the canal to get frozen yogurt.

Tuesday:  Another day at home with the kids and Adam (their church's worship leader) came over for dinner... a Tuesday tradition they have.

Wednesday:  Women's bible study in the morning at church, then a trip to Ikea... my first time!  I was quite overdue and it was a good thing I had to pack and travel with what I bought, or I would've walked out with a cart-full.  B took some pics of the boys in the late afternoon for their 1-ish and 3-ish year pics and the kids played at the playground afterwards.

Thursday:  Took the kids to the Chandler airport for lunch at Hangar Cafe.  The airport has a bunch of small private planes that you can see take-off and land while you eat.  A stop at a candy shop on the way home where all the kids got to spend $1 on whatever they wanted officially made us "fun moms."  :)  After the babies were in bed for the night, Seth took care of the other 4 kiddos while B and I went out for dinner at Postinos, my favorite place to eat there and our tradition when I come.

Friday morning:  Fly home with the boys!  Sad to leave but ready to come home and see Chad again.  To repeat the flight to AZ, Beck slept a couple hours and Creighton stayed awake the whole time. :)  But he really was a good little guy and made friends with the people around him... no crying, just a little fussy here and there.

adults out on our hike... I believe the only adult only picture that was taken :)

the babies bonding over their bottles

ha!  Creighton had weird beady eyes in this pic and somehow when I tried to edit with red eye he ended up with dark circles around his eyes.  Made me lol... literally.

Annaika mastering the F150... I think G's a little sad it's not her turn...

Beck loving the truck, despite his poor driving skills... fast forward 15 years and this could be the picture of him leaving on a date.  oh no.

Norah is definitely a little worried.

Dinner at the kids table.  

Warning: mischievous kids.

I believe this would be a picture of what happens when the adults are trying to enjoy their food and the babies get whatever keeps them happy.  Seeley with a mouthful of burger & fries and Creighton munching on a hot dog bun.  Yum.

Bike ride to fro-yo!

Ah... playing in the sun.  Despite the warm sunny day I was somehow still too lazy to go outside to take this pic... hence the window glare.

Tramp time.

And trying to get one pic of all the kids before we left.  This is the "best one."  Hence the others that follow...

.... and small side note:  this trip took place the middle of February.  I'm behind and it's work's fault. :)