Happy Easter

Ethan and Seth with one of their three Easter baskets. Yes, they each got three baskets! The Easter bunny (a.k.a. Mimi, Emily, Granny, and I) gave them so much stuff that it wouldn't all fit in one mere basket.

Dad said the boys looked like little golf pros in their Easter vests and pants, so he wanted a picture of them with their golf clubs.

How cute is Nate in his little Easter outfit?! We tried to get Seth to put his arm around Nate, but didn't have much success with that (as you can see). And Ethan didn't even want to touch him.

Seth trying out the sling shot that Granny sent for the boys. We ALL had fun with the sling shots. Good idea, Granny!

The boys looking cute. When I put their Easter clothes on, Seth said, "I be handsome!" and Ethan said, "I so cute!" It's obvious that they here those phrases a lot.

Dad reading Ethan his new Diego book.

The boys enjoying mom's delicious sugar cookies and frosting. Thanks, mom, for the great Easter dinner and all the yummy treats.

Seth giving the Easter bunny a big smooch.

On Friday and Saturday, we were in Kansas City at Nana and Fred's house. The boys had a good time with them. Thank you so much, Nana and Fred, for all the good food and all the Easter gifts. We love you very much!

Here are Emily and I with our boys and our cousins, Erin and Shannon, with all of their kids. Erin has four kids and Shannon has three, including new twin boys!

Cousins

Emily and I had these pictures of the three boys taken for an Easter gift for mom. Believe it or not, we had them taken at Wal-Mart. Not too bad for Wal-Mart pics.

I like this pose, but it took several tries before the photographer got a shot where Ethan's big head wasn't totally blocking Seth's head!

This picture would have been perfect if Seth had been smiling bigger. The poor little guy looks like he's about to fall asleep.

How adorable are my two little guys?!

Nate slept peacefully through most of the picture taking. He is such a sweet little baby.

Bye, Dada! We Love You!

Well, Tim is on his way to Kuwait as I sit here typing this new post. It all happened very quickly and I am still trying to digest it all. The good news is that he will only be gone about three months this time and he will not be in constant danger in Kuwait like he was when he was in Iraq. I'm also glad that the boys and I are here with my family right now and not at home by ourselves feeling sad and lonely. Please keep Tim in your thoughts and prayers during these next few months.

Since we have been here in Missouri for about a month now, the boys didn't get to say goodbye to Tim in person. So, we're doing it on the blog instead.

Here are the boys blowing Tim kisses. I love you, babe. Be safe and we'll see you soon.

Good Times in Missouri

Mimi and her boys. They have all been having a blast together.

Mom and Zach reading the boys their bedtime story. Notice Ethan playing with Zach's earring.

Dad and Nate.

Seth wearing a cowboy hat at Emily and Jon's house. Everytime he puts it on he says, "Yee-Haw! I a cowboy!"

I love this picture! Ethan looks a little bored going to the bathroom.

Mom giving the boys a bath. They love taking a bath in her big garden tub.

Zach holding his newest little nephew, baby Nate.

Dad buzzing Ethan's hair. It is definitely not Ethan's favorite thing to do, but he is a real trooper about it most of the time.

Seth modeling another hat. He's into hats right now.

Here are the boys with me and Wade. Wade is the son of my good friend, Gayle, and he was also my student during my very first year of teaching 6th grade language arts. Poor guy! He still turned out okay, despite having me as a teacher! Wade is now 18 and will graduate from high school next month. Wow! He makes me feel really old. He is such a great kid and the boys have such a great time with him. We love you, Wade.

Here I am with my friend, Gayle. We met while teaching together seven years ago and have been friends ever since. She is such an awesome person. We always talk too much, eat too much, and have so much fun when we're together. Our most recent adventure was going to The Eagles concert in Kansas City a few weeks ago. We both love The Eagles, so it was great to get to share that experience together.

The Great Outdoors

We finally had a warm day here in Missouri, so we took the boys to the park. These pictures were taken at a really nice park in Columbia by Emily and Jon's house. The boys loved climbing these tires up and down the hills.

Seth got stuck at the very top and decided to rest a minute until I could help him.

Jon pushing the boys in the swings.

Mom and I took the boys to throw rocks in the lake one day last week. They loved it and would have stayed there for hours if we hadn't finally dragged them away. My mom said that when we first moved down to the lake from Kansas City when I was a little girl that I loved throwing rocks in the lake too. Like mother, like sons, I guess.

Mom and the boys at the lake. Seth kept picking up the largest rocks he could find and we thought he was going to go right into the lake with the rocks a couple times.

The boys...yep, still throwing rocks.

Mom and dad's dog, Mercedes, joined us at the lake. She kept jumping in the water after the rocks and whatever else we threw in there for her. Then, she would get out and shake off right next to us. The boys were soaked.