Little brother antics

I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but I'll say it again. I don't know exactly what it's like to have twins, but I'm pretty sure Matthew and Aaron are almost there. These two have really grown close this past year while Daniel has been in school and they are at home together all morning before Matthew goes to preschool. It can get pretty frustrating sometimes, as they feed off of each other and it's hard to break up the craziness, but it is really sweet how well they get along with each other.

 Our new neighbors decided they didn't like the old hot tub and huge wood deck off the back of the house next door. These two had a great time watching out their window as the construction equipment remove all the debris.

 Then they moved to the play structure out back for a better view over the fence.

 Lollipops in the bathtub? What is this, Mardi Gras? 

(Actually, yes, it was)

Taking care of  Auntie Laura's cat, Finn, while she is out of town is always fun. They like to play a little indoor football before we go.

 A little shopping trip to Crate and Barrel for a wedding gift turned into "let's try out all the beds and couches!"

Matchers. Most days, these two plan their outfits together.

Daniel and the Christmas tree

We still have our Christmas tree... At first it was just too rainy outside to spend time cutting it up and putting it in the yard waste bin. Then when it started getting nice again, Daniel decided to adopt it as his own personal outdoor toy. Now, I'm not sure when (if ever) it will finally make its way to the curb.

 Daniel is one strong kid. He managed to get the tree this far before asking for some help maneuvering the tree all the way up.

 Not quite sure what he has planned here.

Oh, of course. He's a fighter pilot. The tree is his "A-wing."

After a few days of the a-wing, the tree was launched off the top...where it is subsequently beaten by Matthew...

 and then dragged away by Daniel...

who has a new plan for the tree.

 Of course. Every play structure needs a tree to stop the swings from going too fast.

Back outside

It's still pretty cold, but since it's been mostly dry we've been able to play outside a bit more. The boys love being outside and now with Aaron getting sturdier on his feet he can join in on the fun!

 Daniel has lots of tricks on the swings. This time he was practicing swinging upside down.

 Matthew is pretty good at superhero swinging.

I want to swing, too!

Matthew earns his keep by mowing the lawn.

Aaron is all over the place outside. If he's not going in and out of the playhouse, he's climbing the ladder to the top of the structure and going down the slide. I prefer he stay on the ground--he is only 15 months old after all.

Blurry, yes, but I love the mischievous look on Matthew's face as he watches Aaron try to get in.

We can't wait for warmer weather so we can play outside even more!

Creative, but no, thank you

I spotted Daniel on the upper level of the play structure recently with a big bucket of rocks, while Matthew was playing on the ground. As I started to remind him of the "no rocks (or other heavy objects) on the top level of the structure" rule, he interrupted me, exasperated, saying

"but Mom! How am I supposed to play meteor shower?!"

He definitely gets points for creativity, but I'm pretty sure Matthew would prefer to stick with meteorites on the less-realistic side.

Four-Year-Old Photography

I mentioned the other day that Daniel was having fun playing photographer. Last Saturday, he got to take the camera out again with his Aunt Bea, though he must have been having so much fun with her that he didn't take many pictures. Going through his pictures was so much fun. It is amazing to see the world through his eyes. And, I think some of his photos are pretty artistic. Here are some of my favorites:

 Daniel spins around while taking pictures.

 Our superstruct crane.

 Aaron follows Daniel around like a puppy.

 Aaron finds some books. Books are more fun than brothers sometimes.

 Close up of the crane driver.

 Moving outside, the gate.

 We call this one "shovel."

 Backyards.

 Inside the play structure.

Sunny day.

 Decorative detail.

 Sky over our roof.

 Sunlight and shadows.

 One of my personal favorites, Daniel documents a trip down the slide.

 Self portrait.

 Water in a bucket.

 Near-parallel lines.

 Great picture of Aunt Bea.

 On the way to Bea's house, Daniel takes note of the golden rule.

 Driving.

 Another favorite, Daniel brought me flowers from Bea's yard. Awww...

Super play structure

Saturday night was rough for Matthew, and Sunday was rough for everyone. We did have a nice visit with Nana and Papa today after Mass, but I didn't end up getting to take any pictures of the fun that was had. So, instead of getting into the details of the cranky parts of our day, I thought I would post about the fun new toy in our yard that was made possible by Nana and Papa.

If you've been reading this lately, you've heard mention and seen bits and pieces of the new play structure in our yard. We were a bit reluctant to add such a huge piece of equipment into our tiny yard, but with two super-active kiddos and one chomping-at-the-bit baby we finally gave in and said goodbye to our mostly empty yard and hello to hours of new fun for the boys. And, as it turns out, the structure really doesn't use up too much of the yard. In fact, it sits mostly on the back part of the yard that is usually just dirt since the neighbors' trees don't allow for any sunlight or rain to get in there. We'd been eying this model from Costco for awhile, planning on having it built before Chris left for Minnesota as a fun distraction for the boys, and it turns out we got it just in time: our Costco had the last one in the state (other than the floor model, which we would've had to take apart and reassemble ourselves). So, last weekend was set aside as a work weekend and the boys got to help Daddy, Papa, Uncle Ian, and Uncle Victor put together the structure. The four men worked till midnight the first day, and Daddy and Papa finished it up from 10-5 the next day. They must really love these boys to work so hard for them!

Matthew unpacks wood pieces while Daniel reads off the codes to Uncle Victor and Papa.

 Organizing the pieces.

 Uncle Ian, Daddy and Papa get some help from Jacob, Daniel and Matthew.

Sometime after 10 pm, the part one of the roof goes up.

It fits!

Back to work! Part two of the roof isn't going to build itself!

Day two: Daniel gets to try out the rings.

If you ask which part of the play structure is his favorite, he'll say the whole thing...but it's clear the rings/bar get more attention from Daniel than anything else right now.

 Finished! The boys check it out.

 Matthew loves to climb up top. Getting down is another story.

 Looking awfully ragamuffin-ish, the big boys enjoy their dinner in their new playhouse.

Great job, guys! Thank you Nana and Papa for this wonderful addition to the back yard. Hours of fun will be had here...

Day 2

Yesterday was a crazy weather day--thunder and lightning on and off all day long. Matthew liked to hear the thunder, and was sad when it would stop for awhile. Here are some highlights of our second day without Chis. The pictures are a bit Daniel-centric, since most of our fun happened while Matthew was napping.

 Daniel had fun being a photographer...stay tuned for a selection of his favorite photos. (Also, check out our awesome new play structure! It's so cool it will get its own post, too.)

 Aaron dining al fresco. 

 Treat for the day: fresh grapefruit sodas, made with homemade grapefruit syrup and fresh juice.

 Refreshing!

Daniel loves these superstruct toys. We finally attempted to make the crane. It turned out pretty well!