A Message from Bob...

Ethan arrived home from school today to find that a package was lying by the front door for him. A special package from Bob the Builder just for him. He was greeted with a new movie and a special new coloring book. I talked with Ethan and told him that since he was becoming such a big boy and using the potty that Daddy, Mommy, Sophie, and Bob were very proud of him. We made it halfway through the day at school, and then he wanted his diaper on. He is doing an excellent job, but still at his own pace. (I figure he is still young, so this will take some time.)

Happy Times...

Some of my favorite times are just sitting and playing with the kids. Today, they are playing together very nicely. They were also very well behaved when we had to go out for some errands. Big Steps Today: Ethan had put on underwear this morning. He was watching me lower Sophie's crib, well he was helping too. He stopped using the tools and told me that he had to go potty!!! He ran into the bathroom, I helped him up, and taa-daa!!! He did it. Hours later we were ready to leave for the store and we asked him, diaper or underwear. He wanted to wear the underwear!! I just packed a bag for "just in case" and away we went. We went to the first store with no problem, even made a pit stop in the bathroom, no luck but we tried! Then we made it halfway through the next store and then we had an accident. Changed clothes, and we are still going strong. I will pack a big bag of clothes for school tomorrow and hope that he wants to use the bathroom when his friends do! Wish him Luck!! ... (as you can see...Ethan still has his boots on!)

The Shirt Says It All...

Sophie is feeling a litte under the weather, as you can tell from her eyes. She is still a happy baby playing away. Her shirt says it all with "It's my brothers fault".

No Doubt About It... He's Our Son!!!

This is a very excited little boy. He has on his favorite Spiderman night shirt, and his new Thomas the train boots. After we put him to bed, he put the new boots back on and slept in them!!!

Ethan can be a pirate too!

This is my little Ethan at school. This is him trying to be a pirate!!

Another bath time favorite

This one is by request. Just for you Auntie!
Like I have said, bath time is always FUNTIME!!

Rub-A-Dub-Dub...

...there is a crazy boy in the tub! Bath time is always fun at the Piccolo house. Ethan is a wild boy in the tub. He can swim, drive his car, and squeeze his water toys!! Ethan is also working on recognizing his letters in the tub. He can say something that begins with each letter for about half the alphabet. (hey I will throw in a learning activity where ever I can) He loves the water. Still not to fond of the water over his head, but doing much better. When the kids are in there together the noise level can get through the roof!!

I am ready for my close-up

I could look at these eyes all day. She has the most captivating eyes I have seen. (Granted I could be a little bias) Every time that we are stopped by a stranger for them to say hi or get a closer look at her, the first thing that they comment on is "wow" what big eyes you have. Then you know they usually go on to say something about her crazy hair. Someday it will lay down nicely, as soon as she gets a little more!

Another great Meal

Ok... If you are a Bellerive, you know what this dish is. Remember... We have had it countless times. It has become one of my favorite dishes to make and eat. You know with the chicken, stuffing, and mozzarella cheese!! Ethan and Brian have come to love it as well. Tonight Sophia had her first bite of the stuffing, and she too Loves it. I can not say enough about it!!

Smiling Sophie

Sophie had a special treat today for lunch. She had some of Ethan's mac and cheese. I think that she was very excited to have real food. The noodles were tiny and I am not even sure if she chewed them, but she loved it!!!

Working Hard

He works so hard... Everything that Ethan does, he puts in 100%. You can tell here by the way that he sticks out his tongue. I think that I have heard that this is a family trait, from both sides... how weird!!

Artwork

Ethan calls this one... "Haircut" I am not sure why, but that is what he has chosen. I asked him what he was coloring and he told me that this was a picture of a haircut. I love it.

...and he's out...

... after playing and playing (during nap time) he has crashed. He was playing in the car seat box for a while, then his trucks, and then it was silent. I went upstairs because sometimes,too much of a good thing, turns out to be not such a good thing. Looks like someone will be helping me clean his room when he wakes up.

Sunday Afternoon Naps

Sunday afternoon naps are not just for the little. Usually you can find Brian, trying to catch a few ZZZ's also. As you can see, he will go undercover and say that he is putting Ethan down for a nap. When I went upstairs though, I found this... By the way, Ethan was up playing and watching Bob the Builder.




So who is really getting that nap????

Upgrade!

Ethan has received his new car seat. This is his first new car since he was 9 months old. He is passing his old one on to Sophia, who is moving out of the infant carrier. I am sad about that though, because the carrier is very convenient. So now I will also have to put her in her snow suit to stay warm...no more snuggly. boo hoo....

another oldie, but goodie...

This was suppose to be a family photo. The kids were sleeping though by the time we made it here. We didn't want to wake them, so like the geeks we are, we set the timer on the camera and took the pic from the hood of our car!!

Cannon Mountain

I know that this picture is older, but I was going through all the photos, and this was a great day. Last October we all went up to Cannon Mountain for a day out. Brian and I looked at foliage, and the kids, well they slept alot in the car. When we got to Cannon though, they were awake and we even went up in the tram.

My two Boys!!! What more can I say, I love them. We had a window seat on the way down, there was a great view. I look forward to going again.

Valentines Treat

This is proud Ethan with the cupcakes, that he helped decorate. Everytime he looks at them, he starts singing "Happy Birthday".

Yummy

Ethan and I have been busy, since we got home from school. Sophia watched from her thrown in the high chair. Ethan and I made a roast, a loaf of bread, and he is showing off his cupcakes, he helped bake. YUMMY!!!

Here is Ethan next to the bread machine...

pssst..Sophia, come here...

I don't know what the intentions were here... I had to grab the camera though. It just looked like Ethan wanted to put Sophie under the TV!! The look on her face is great!

BIG TRUCK

Little boy blue... Ethan had a fever today so we stayed inside. He did find some entertainment though. Every time he heard that rumble coming down the street, he would run to the window. This is my favorite pic of the day.

Snow Day!

This one was before NOON. The snow came down all day... The kids did not nap at the same time today, so I we have had to wait to shovel, until we were both home. Letting it go all day left us with...

all this SNOW!!! I took the first shift and shoveled the walkway and as you can see about 1/2 of the driveway. Now Bri is out there finishing up. It was light, but man was there a lot of it.

NASCAR is starting!!!

Tonight, my house has become a dragway!! Ethan has learned to push Sophie in her walker from the kitchen to the door in the playroom. He thinks that it is really funny to bang into things on the way. Sophie, for some reason, also finds the whiplash amusing.

I think that is one of the funniest pictures of the two of them!!! I mean I am sitting here looking at it and laughing out loud!!!

Ethan can Cook?

Well... I am not sure that one would call him a cook. I like to think of him, as more of a taste tester. He is the one that has tasted the frozen veggies, the hard spaghetti, and tonight, zucchini (which he loved). I am sure that he found this much more pleasing, than all the plastic food we have been eating from his play kitchen Santa brought him.

I can COOK

I know that I probably should already know how to cook, but I don't. I have though, this week began. I opened up my cookbook that I recieved as a wedding gift (a few years ago :) and have started cooking. Tonight on the menu was Italian chicken with couscous. Here is a picture of that meal. It really did taste better than it looked. Get this... Everyone ate it... and liked it. Last night was stuffed peppers. Tomorrow I am trying for my first Lasagna. Wish me Luck!

My Little Photographer

Here is an example of Ethan's Photograpghy. He is very interested in taking pictures... OF EVERYTHING!!!!! Thank goodness for digital cameras. I will admit though, I still keep them all.

This is one of Ethan's most favorite toys. He has also moved on to other yellow trucks and is now in love with TRACTORS!!!! Any piece of construction equipment is a Tractor!!

Almost there....

Sophia-Ann is currently working hard learning how to crawl. She has mastered pushing herself backwards! The hardwood floors are proving to be a challenge. Maybe we will make some of her gripper socks into knee pads!!! I don't think that it is bothering her though, she is having fun.

Family Photo

So the story behind the family photo is: Sophia needed one for the daycare, so that they could finish a project. Looking through all the photos that we have, I noticed that there is always someone missing. We decided to set the tripod up in the living room and take our chances. Little did we know that we have a budding photographer on our hands. Ethan had to be the one to hit the timer. So he would run over to the camera hit the timer and then fly back onto the couch. After 20 times, this seems to be the best!!

I am not sure if it is because I take so many pictures of my children, or just drilled in me from my own childhhod. It has come to my attention that I still say the word cheese, when my picture is being taken. Maybe a lot of people do it (gee I hope so) or it's just me, which also will not be surprising to those that know me. Just something to think about... Do you still say cheese when you get your picture taken?