Daniel's 5th Birthday

 This kid is 5! He is a very sweet kid, always looking out for his brothers (baby alert!) and always quick to say how much he loves his family. He has started to give out nicknames: Aaron is "Cute," Matthew is "Ball," and Mommy is "Mrs. Mommy, Queen of Moms" (I swear he came up with that on his own). Daniel is rarely seen without his Seahawks hat on...he even tries to sleep in it. He loves his preschool and is proving to be a pretty bright kid. His big accomplishment lately is learning to read simple sentences. Daniel had a great birthday yesterday. It was a school day and his teachers made him a special birthday crown to wear. He also got to bring in rice krispie treats to share with his classmates for snack. He said it was the best day ever. :) We can't believe how fast five years has gone by...

 Daniel had a messy first few bites of cake back in 2008.

 In 2009, he started to be an extraordinarily clean kid.

 Happy to be three!

 Ready for four.

Which brings us to last night. Daniel picked out dinner: pizza with sausage, pepperoni and salami (no vegetarians here...). He also decided he wanted carrot cake. We clarified with him multiple times to make sure he knew that carrot cake had actual carrots in it. He insisted on it, so we made it. Turns out he doesn't like carrot cake. Oh well, he'll get a redo on the cake when we have his friends over next weekend.

Matthew waits patiently for the cake to come out.

Aaron gets a closer look at what he's in for next month (!).

We love this guy! Happy birthday, Daniel!

5 Years Ago...

...this little guy made us parents. Happy Birthday, Daniel!

More to come later...

Ecco, Matthew

Behold, Matthew.

Boat Day!

On what was sure to be one of the last good days to boat, Papa took the family out for a trip around Lake Washington and through the Ballard Locks.  The boys loved it. 

Matthew staked out a special spot on the boat and wouldn't budge, while Daniel learned to drive all by himself.  And Aaron, well, he got to crawl a little but mostly just wanted to eat all ride long.

The day starts!

Aaron and Papa relax.

Daniel and Matthew's favorite spot at the front of the boat - complete with a bar to hang on (see below).

The new Husky Stadium grand stands begin to rise.  Go Dawgs!

Daniel gets his first driving lesson.

Gas Works Park!

Daniel steers us towards the Ballard Locks.

The boat was a mixed bag for Aaron, but Mommy makes everything better.

Heading to the locks with the Aurora and Freemon bridges behind us.

WHAT?!  Are we in Mississippi?!

Into the Ballard Locks!  Salmon were jumping everywhere!

The doors close and down we go, out to the Ocean.

The Hanzelis at the Locks:)

Aaron was a great deck hand.

Matthew just can't miss that afternoon nap:)

Daniel and Daddy navigate us to our dinner spot.

Fish and Chips at Ivars!

The hungry crew eats.

Before we could launch Daniel and Matthew just had to see the top on the boat.

Diaper change in a boat, check.

This bar was probably Matthew's favorite part.

The sun is setting, time to head home.

Bye bye, Montlake Bridge.

Daniel on watch as we head home.

The sun and Husky Stadium in all their glory.

Brothers

Every once in a while, all three boys find a way to play together. Even better, sometimes they find a way to play (or just be) together...quietly. That's my favorite.

And then I ruin it by taking pictures.

Goggles

Matthew was the lucky recipient of his own pair of goggles recently.

10 months

Sunday was Aaron's 10 month birthday. Have we mentioned how time flies?

Aaron's tenth month was spent growing! He is finally putting on some weight (more than a pound in the past 2 weeks!), and his teeth are coming in as well. He is still loving his brothers, following them all over the place. He thinks Matthew is hilarious (who doesn't?), and will laugh at anything Matthew says or does. Matthew, of course, takes advantage of this to its fullest. Daniel has been very sweet, helping Aaron to walk and letting us know when Aaron is doing something dangerous (baby alert!). Aaron has been testing his physical capabilities...he has been found standing on boxes and kid-sized chairs, and also trying to climb bookshelves. He stands on his own and can take one step, but I think the recent rapid weight gain has thrown off his balance for now. He is FINALLY on a good sleeping schedule, taking two very predictable 90 minute naps during the day and sleeping close to 12 hours at night. We seriously can't believe it's been ten months already. Where does the time go?

 Enjoying some of the late summer heat in his own "pool." 

 Getting some love from great-grandma Eva.

 Aaron LOVES the swings at the park, and throws a mini-tantrum if you take him out.

 If you look closely, you'll see three (almost four) teeth on the top.

 I love how he hooks his toes on the side of the high chair to keep from slipping down...

 Pushing the dump truck around the yard.

 "This is so much fun! I love being able to get around on my own!"

What a pose. :)

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.