When we pulled in the driveway after our 8 hour over-night trip back from North Carolina one of the first things Owen asked to do was go bowling. I was like, Seriously? Where he got the idea, we don’t know since he’s never been bowling before. It was too early and we were too tired to go after the long drive, so we all caught up on rest and took the boys bowling the next day.

When we got to the bowling alley, Owen of course was super excited. He and Mike picked out their balls, then Owen picked out mine. He told me I needed a pink one. Funny thing was, the ball had the initials “BEN” on it. I also thought it was sooooo cute that they have little bowling shoes in Owen’s size.

Owen liked it at first, but then got board b/c it was taking his ball too long to get down the lane. He had a good time cheering his Mommy and Daddy on though and thanks to Wii Bowling he knew exactly when we got a spare or a strike. We even let Benny take a turn with the “BEN” ball.

We will definitely take them again, but to a different alley next time that has a better set up for kids. The other bowling alley has a ramp kids can push the ball down which is much more Owen’s speed.

1. I’m so far behind and have a lot to share with you… even stuff I haven’t posted from 2-3 weeks ago. I promise to try my best this week to get the pictures out for all to see. It’s good stuff too… like Owen & Benny’s first time bowling.
2. We finally made the decision on what the boys are going to be for Halloween. Owen’s going to be a Hamburger and Benny’s going to be a Tiger.
3. Owen’s new thing is at bed time he tells me, “Mama, I have to dream.” I then ask him what he’s going to dream about. I get some funny answers. Last night it was “I’m going to dream about love and sliding really fast.”
4. Owen’s also doing really well at preschool. I asked him what he’s learning and I get a consistent answer that always has something to do with the day’s snack. He’s such a Thomas…those Thomas men love their food!
5. We had a yard sale this past weekend and I finally broke down and decided to sell the boys 0-12 month clothes and my maternity clothes. It was HARD putting that stuff for sale. There are so many memories attached. Not sure if we are 100% done having babies, but we need the space. However, I did keep my favorite pieces of the boy’s clothes and not all of it sold. Apparently there must have been a ton of little girls born lately b/c everyone was looking for girl’s clothes.
6. The title of “screamer” at the salon as now been passed down to Benny. We took the boys to get their hair cut tonight. Owen’s finally doing great with getting a hair cut. No tears, not screams, no kicking. However, his brother has now picked up the bad habit. Up until tonight Benny’s never made a peep while getting his pretty locks snipped. Looks like we’re in for another 2 years of hellish trips for hair cuts.
7. Progress is being made in the basement. Drywall is up and we’re going to start mudding soon. I gave Mike the deadline of 12/24 so it’s ready for Xmas so his parents have a place to stay when they visit.
8. Speaking of Christmas… I’ve already started shopping and Owen’s already talking about his must have gift for the year… “Spin & Fix Thomas”. He even had me add it to the grocery list this past weekend in hopes we’d pick it up. Lucky for him, “Santa” got the message and it’s tucked safely away for the holiday pending that O’s a good boy and is nice and not naughty.
9. Benny Boo. He’s our little buddy. It’s hard to describe his awesomeness… he’s just so darn cute. It’s so fun to just watch him play now because he is finally understanding how to play with toy sets the way they are suppose to be played with. He loves toys that are phones and of course his Thomas Trains. He also is really into his shapes. Not only can he point different shapes out when asked and sort them in his shape sorter, but he can verbalize them too. He even pointed to the square design in our headboard and said “Square”. He’s starting to hit that “soaking sponge” point so we need to take full advantage and start pouring on the knowledge.
10. Even though he is as cute as he comes, Benny has developed a bad habit lately. He constantly wants held. I don’t know if it’s because he’s getting over a little cold or cutting teeth, but he’s so clingy and he trys to climb up you. Mike even had to mow the lawn last week carrying him. It’s hard to get things done and slighly annoying, but I’m going to try and take advantage of it while it lasts because we’re losing the “baby” in him little by little everyday. I’m going to try and enjoy him like this as long as I can. Before I know it, he’ll be a big boy like his brother.

Six years ago today Mike and I said our “I do’s”. 2 houses, 1 dog, 2 kids, 7 cars and a whole lot of happy times later, we couldn’t imagine our life any better. The card I got him did a very good job of summing up how I feel…

“What we have is a beautiful partnetship. We’re a team, you and I. The kind of love and friendship we share doesn’t come from wishing. It comes from being together 365 days a year, through good times and bad and everything in between.

You are my closest friend, my partner in life… the one I can count on and who can count on me. Today and every day, I love having you in my life and in my heart.”

Happy Anniversay, Michael! I thank God everyday for our marriage and the wonderful life we’ve built together. It’s been six happy years of marriage and I know we both look forward to many more to come.

On Labor Day, the weather forecast wasn’t looking too hot, so we decided to go to the Aquarium at Fort Fisher. The boys LOVE fish… they have their fishy night lights and fishy bathroom, so we knew they would enjoy the Aquarium.

The boys got to see birds, alligators, fish, an albino alligator named Luna, little sharks, sting rays, a green eel, frogs, turtles, an octopus, and of course, more fish.

As a souvenir, Owen got a puzzle, Benny got a book, and they both got really cute stuffed turtles from Mimi and Pop Pop. When we asked Owen what he wanted to name his turtle, his first response was “Turtle Park Thomas”. I laughed, but wasn’t surprised because lately he wants you to call him by his official name. Not Owie, Buddy, Stinker, etc. He says, “Call me Owen” or “I’m Owen Park Thomas”. After a little persuading, we finally got him to pick a new name for his turtle. His turtle was Fred and Benny’s was Frank.

After the aquarium we headed to a local burger joint for lunch. YUMMO!! That burger and Almond Joy milk shake were worth the 7 ½ hour drive alone. If you are ever in Wilmington/Carolina Beach, NC, you must stop at Cubbies.

Well, we came to North Carolina mainly for one thing… the BEACH! We had nice weather our first day and last two days, but the middle of our vacation was pretty wet. The storms this summer were so intense that a good portion of the sand was washed away so we really couldn’t go on the beach right off the condo. We found a big beach less than a mile up the road and it was great to allow the boys to hit the waves and play in the sand.

I was touch and go before the trip as to whether the boys would like the water or not, but both of them couldn’t get enough. Owen would chase the waves and Benny liked riding the waves with his Daddy. He would giggle and laugh so loud you could hear him 20 feet away. Sometimes he’d even say “Set. GO!” as the waves were coming in.

We also enjoyed watching the waves come in from the deck swing. Benny learned how to say “Ocean” and “Wave” (in addition to “Pool”) and when we would take him on the deck, he’d point to the water and say those words. The deck swing was also relaxing for Mommy and Daddy to watch the moon/sunset and kick back with an adult beverage.

We have to get the boys to the beach next year. They enjoyed it so much… I wish we lived closer to the ocean so we could take them there more than once a year. I mean, what mom wouldn’t just want to sit on the beach and see this all the time. The loves of my life… they warm my heart.

This year Owen is going to preschool at a local church. He goes 2 days a week for 2 1/2 hours each day. I’m so excited for him. He loves being around other kids so this will be a great opportunity for him to meet more kids his age and get use to structure in groups for when he goes to Kindergarten in a few years.

Today was bring your favorite stuffed friend to school day and he picked his blue pillow puppy. Doesn’t he look so cute!

He had a great time on his first day. He told us he played games and then he whispered “I learned how to be quiet.” We laughed. Maybe now he’ll listen when we tell him inside voice.

He had to find his name on the school and put the leaf with his name on the tree house.

We had our first family trip to the beach and it was nice. We went to the Cape Fear area of North Carolina (Wilmington, Carolina Beach, Kure Beach) with Mimi & Pop Pop and the boys just loved it! I have so much to tell and share about the trip, so instead of one massively large post, I’m going to break it up into parts.

I’m starting backwards, kind of. On our last night there we attempted to take family pictures on the beach. We got to the beach at 6:30 PM, but it was still a little too bright, so we came back 45 minutes later. The light was good, but getting dark quick. Needless to say between losing light, two boys who don’t look at the camera at the same time and a host of other issues, I didn’t get the pictures I was hoping for. BUT… we did get a few keepers out of the 200+ pictures that were taken and thanks to Photoshop I was able to salvage some I thought were hopeless. Some might be slightly out of focus and not sharp (making them small for the web makes them look better than prints), bad poses, etc. but I have to stop being so critical and accept that these are pictures that capture my family’s first trip to the beach.

So, here is our family on our first vacation as a family of 4.…

I was really happy my mom was able to capture these next shots. Owen asks for “family hugs” all the time and in the middle of trying to take pictures, he asked for one. I’d never be able to take a picture of one of our family hugs, and now I have one. =)

On Saturday, Mike and his best friend Phil were working on hanging the drywall in the basement (yes… we’re still working on the basement… slowly but surely). When Owen woke up from quiet time and knew they were down there, he wanted to go, BAD! I told him, no that Daddy and Uncle Phil were doing “Man Stuff”. Well, he puts on his shoes, opens the basement door and goes:

Owen: “Daddy, I wanna do man stuff.”

Mike & Phil: **Chuckle** Really?!?

Owen: “But Daddy, I’m a man. I can do man stuff.”

So, Mike told him to get his Handy Manny gear on and come downstairs. O jumped right to it and before you know it, he was in the basement, hard hat on, goggles on, and Diego sippy cup in hand. All ready to help do “Man Stuff”.