Impromptu Science Experiment

With temperatures hoovering at or below 30 degrees, the boys and I decided to conduct a little science experiment.  We labeled three cups and filled them with varying amounts of water.  We put them outside on the deck and checked them several times throughout the day to see how long it took each cup to freeze.  Ryan recorded all the relevant data on a chart that we created.  I figured this was a fun way for Ryan to practice telling time and writing his numbers.  And, it was a fun introduction to science.  At the boys' bedtime, none of the cups had frozen over.  They are eager to check them in the morning to see what happened overnight (though I hope they aren't so excited that they get up ridiculously early!).

Ice Skating

Since the boys had off from school today for Martin Luther King Day, we decided we wanted to get out of the house and do something fun together as a family.  So, we took Ryan and Gavin ice skating for the first time.  Mike and I have only been ice skating a couple of times ourselves, so it was a real adventure.  Mike was far more comfortable with it than I was.  It was all I could do to stay on my own feet, let alone keep Gavin upright!  After falling a couple of times, Gavin refused to bear any weight on his legs, so I had to hold him up by his armpits and try to skate around the rink.  We looked like poetry in motion!  It took us at least 15 minutes to travel less than a quarter of the way around the rink.  Then they announced for everyone to clear the rink so the Zamboni could come out and smooth the ice.  I panicked because they now expected me to exit the rink in mere minutes when it had taken me at least 15 minutes to cover that same ground!  Luckily, I was able to carry Gavin as I awkwardly skated out.

Ryan and Daddy skated like pros in comparison.  Ryan, who was reluctant to go at first, had a great time.  In fact, he's already begging us to go back again this weekend.  He didn't fall that often, but when he did, he giggled and picked himself back up and started skating again.  And, while Gavin and I had a death grip on the sides of the rink, Daddy and Ryan braved the center ice with no wall for support.  They even made it around the rink several times without falling down.  Ryan had such a great time that he and Daddy (much to my dismay) are considering ice hockey lessons!  Football now seems a much safer, tamer option in comparison!  But, at least his opponents couldn't knock his teeth out right now!  

A Playoff Win

The boys celebrate the Ravens' victory over the Texans in the first playoff conference championship game.  Just one game stands  between the Ravens and the Super Bowl!  Hope the Ravens can beat the Patriots in next weekend's AFC Championship game!  We'll be sporting our Purple Pride! 

Party at Trooper 2

Mike organized a going away party for one of the pilots who is leaving because his wife (who is in the military) was transferred to Hawaii.  Luckily, the schedule worked out so that all the medics and pilots assigned to Trooper 2 as well as their families could come and bid the departing pilot farewell.  Since it's rare to have everyone in the same place at the same time, they posed for a group picture in their flight suits.  I have to say, as many times as I've seen Mike in his flight suit, my heart still skips a beat when I see how strikingly handsome he is in it!       

The guys at Trooper 2 position the Hawaii-bound pilot in the hoist to symbolize his departure from the section.

Once all the medic and pilot pictures were done, the kids got to climb in the hoist for pictures. 

No trip to the hangar is complete without a tour of the helicopter and a chance to sit in the pilot seat and learn about all the different controls, gauges, and equipment.

Gavin, who wants to be a "helicopter man" when he grows up, was particularly excited to see the helicopter, especially the back where Daddy helps the hurt people.

Ryan was thrilled to pose for pictures wearing Daddy's helmet!

As if all that excitement weren't enough, they set up inflatable bounce houses in the hangar for the kids to play in.  We had two tired boys at the end of the night!   

Choir Boys

We decided to start the year off right by attending church on New Year's Day.  We were one of the few families that actually made it to the 9 am service since we fell asleep long before midnight on New Year's Eve.  That's just way past our bedtime these days, especially when we're awake before the sun rises most mornings!  Regardless, we would have made every effort to make it to church since faith is an important part of our lives and parenting requires a lot of divine guidance, grace, and intervention! 

Our Kind Of Wii

Although we briefly considered getting Ryan a gaming system for Christmas, we ultimately decided to wait another year in an effort to encourage and extend his imaginative and active play for as long as possible.  We're just not ready to have to compete with video games for his time and attention.  However, he did receive a a plug-and-play device that resembles an old arcade game with a joystick.  It plugs directly into the TV and offers classic games such as Pac Man, Dig Dug, and Rally X.  I think Mommy and Daddy have enjoyed that as much as Ryan!

We've also had a lot of fun with the SmartMat that Nana and PopPop gave Gavin for Christmas.  It's like a preschool version of Wii Fit.  It has educational activities that teach shape, color, and letter recognition as well as active games such as trampoline bouncing, jumping rope, and a foot race.  The boys always seem to post faster times in the race than Mommy! 

I told you we were late adopters of technology!

Busted!

Look who I caught hiding under the play table sneaking leftover Christmas candy!  In the first picture you can see evidence of a Hershey kiss wrapper.  In the bottom picture, boy boys quickly try to shove a Tootsie Roll in their mouths!  Ryan, who thought he was being super stealthy, is now convinced Mommy really does have eyes in the back of her head!  I'm not going to tell them that I was the queen of sneaking Oreo cookies when I thought my mom wasn't looking!

Snowman Pancakes

Since snow flurries were forecasted and Daddy was at work, I decided to surprise the boys with snowman pancakes for dinner.  I used blueberry pancakes for the snowman's body, bacon for the arms, chocolate chips for the eyes, mini M&Ms for the smile, regular M&Ms for the buttons, and marshmallows for the snow.  Not surprisingly, both boys cleared their plate and still begged for dessert afterward!

Lego Master

Ryan is really into Legos these days.  He received several sets for Christmas and had them all put together by the beginning of January.  What we find amazing is that he carefully studies the step-by-step directions and then assembles them all by himself.  The only help Mommy and Daddy provide is opening the plastic bags containing the little pieces. 

We have converted the dining room table into Lego World with a different Lego line assigned to each corner of the table (space, fire, police, and harbor).  The center of the table houses two medieval castles with dueling knights.  The boys spend at least an hour in the dining room every afternoon acting out different scenarios with the various Lego settings.  Luckily, Gavin has quickly learned that he has to use "gentle hands" if he plays with Ryan's Lego sets!

Daddy looks exhausted because Ryan pleaded to go downstairs and start working on the Lego fire department before 7 am!

The finished product includes a rescue squad and ladder truck, an apparatus bay with working garage doors, office space, a kitchen, and living quarters.  The feature he finds most exciting is the coffee maker and coffee mug!

Ryan poses with his masterpiece.  We can take no credit in the making of this; he did it completely on his own, even the stickers!

New Smart Phones!

We may be the last people in America to finally switch to a smart phone!  At least Mike was using a Blackberry before;  I was using the equivalent of the old bag phone!  Unfortunately, I haven't had much time to play with my new phone because Ryan has completely monopolized it so he could play Angry Birds.  Tonight I agreed to download some kid-friendly apps, including a Ninja game and a Cars-themed Memory game.  I'm hoping all those kid games will come in handy the next time we're out to dinner and the boys are getting antsy!     

A Bedtime Story

Last night we reached a major milestone:  Ryan read Gavin an entire Dr. Seuss book for his bedtime story.  He read the book, Green Eggs and Ham.  It took nearly a half an hour, but he made it through all 62 pages on his own!  Tonight, he read Gavin the book, Hop on Pop, which I believe was the first book I ever read on my own.  I'm so pleased that both boys share our love of reading and I'm so proud of how well Ryan is doing reading on his own.  Since reading bedtime stories is such a special part of our day, we encourage Ryan to read a short story on his own, then we try to engage him in chapter books so we can still be a part of his bedtime routine. 

He'll Knock Your Teeth Out

The morning started with Ryan taunting Gavin, calling him a "dirty diaper face."  Gavin responded by jabbing a finger at Ryan and warning him, "no you talk like that to me."  To make his point, Gavin knocked out Ryan's loose top-middle tooth.  We told you he was shaping up to be our little bruiser!

The truth is that Ryan's tooth was so loose it was hanging by a thread.  Whenever he talked, ate, or brushed his teeth he had to push it back into place.  It was so wiggly it just hung in his mouth awkwardly.  And, Gavin didn't mean to make contact with Ryan's mouth when he pointed at him.  Nevertheless, Ryan dissolved into tears when he saw his tooth lying on the floor.  To his credit, Gavin immediately hugged Ryan, kissed his cheek and said, "me sorry, Ryan."  All was quickly forgiven and forgotten and Ryan went to school proudly displaying an even larger gap in his smile!  

When Ryan got home from school, I had them pose for a picture with Gavin showing his "game face" and Ryan holding up his missing tooth.

At bedtime, Ryan tucked his lost tooth into the pocket of his Tooth Fairy pillow with the hopes that she'd come during the night and exchange his tooth for some money or a toy.  In case you didn't know where to look, Gavin is demonstrating that Ryan's tooth is missing from his mouth!  He has also insisted all day that he lost his teeth, too.  I overheard Ryan correcting him several times, explaining, "no, silly, your teeth aren't even wiggly yet!  You didn't loose any teeth!  They aren't even close to coming out!"  Gavin, of course, adamantly insisted, "yes me did, Ryan!"  At mealtimes, they also experimented with different foods to see what could fit in the gap between Ryan's teeth.  They discovered that he could pass a chocolate chip and Trix cereal through the gap while his teeth were clenched!     

Precursor to Skype

Daddy and Ryan have been reading Treasure Island together each night that Daddy is home.  Since it's hard for Ryan to keep up with the story when Daddy is at work for several nights in a row, Daddy decided to videotape himself reading the next chapter of the book.  The funny thing is that we recorded it late the night before when Daddy got home from work around 10 pm.  He tried to wake Ryan up for the dramatic reading, but Ryan was too exhausted.  So, using the overhead light, Daddy read the chapter to a sleeping Ryan.  Then the next night, Ryan watched the video of himself sleeping while Daddy read.  The whole experience was such a hit that we've decided to set up a Skype account for Daddy and the boys to stay connected on those days when Daddy is at work and can't be with us in person.