Road Trip - Day 6!

Spencer isn't a big fan of group pictures at the moment (who can forget our recent photo with Santa experience), he's more of a one on one guy. The boys were having fun playing with a bunch of refrigerator magnets. While Brian was dropping a few magnets into the heat vent, Spencer was finding out if magnets would stick to his head.

Spencer is all about gadgets and modern technology so when he heard the buzz about the "blue tooth", he wanted one. Apparently he didn't realize that sucking on a washable blue marker wasn't the kind of "blue tooth" people were referring to.

We send a great big Happy Birthday wish out to the boy's cousin Haley! Her birthday was actually January 9th, but her party is being held today. This is a picture of Haley (or as she prefers to be called - Dorothy Gale of Kansas) at her party this afternoon. We hope you had a great time and we can't wait to hear all about it when we get home!

Road Trip - Day 5!

We went back to spend a little more time at the capital this morning. For those of you who have never been to the South Dakota state capital, here's a picture of what you are missing. It really is a beautiful building.

While we were waiting for Grandpa to finish up in a meeting, Grandma kept Spencer entertained while Brian and Mommy went exploring.

Mommy tried to slip one more picture in before we drove back to Grandma and Grandpa's house. This picture was taken in front of the steps in the rotunda. Where is Spencer's big brother you ask? He is having a small melt down just out of the camera's view. Because of that, Mommy took the picture with just Spencer in it and we went home immediately afterwords.

I'm very glad that we were able to make the trip to the capital. The boys nap, meal and bedtime routines have all been a bit off for the past few days but they are adjusting and going with the flow remarkably well!

Road Trip - Day 4!

Our time at the capital today was nothing less than exciting! Spencer spent the majority of his time enjoying the tour from his stroller but he seemed to be happy with that arrangement.

We arrived a couple minutes early for our appointment to see the Governor. Spencer took advantage of that time by roaming around his outer office leaving a trail of his fingerprints on everything that was glass topped! Thank you to Governor Rounds for taking time out of your busy schedule to fit us in. We really appreciate it!







Unfortunately, when it was time for the Senate to go into session for the day, Spencer couldn't keep his eyes open any longer so we needed to head back to the hotel for naps. When Grandpa got back to the hotel tonight, Spencer couldn't wait to show him the cool hiding spot that are in his room! Grandpa was knocking on the door listening for Brian to answer "who's there?" from the inside. Spencer thought it looked like a lot of fun but he needs a few more lessons on how to knock! Spencer has more birthday wishes to send out today.......Happy Birthday Uncle Seth!!!!!

Road Trip - Day 3!

After a good night sleep at Grandma and Grandpa's house last night, the boys spent a good part of today relaxing and playing. We are especially excited that Great Grandma Irene has moved to an apartment just down the street from Grandma and Grandpa. We will be able to visit her much more frequently starting........today!

After spending some time chatting with Gram, we loaded into the van to head out for Pierre, where the state capital is located. We stayed in a hotel room right next to Grandma and Grandpa's room which was handy and convenient! Their room had some great cabinets that made for the perfect play area for two little boys!

Spencer also sends a great big Happy Birthday to Uncle Kevin today!!!!!

Road Trip - Day 2!

Mommy and the boys enjoyed our visit with Uncle Dave and Aunt Karrie and are looking forward to seeing them on our return trip as well! We got back on the road pretty close to our projected departure time and were once again happy to see clear roads and no snow flakes in sight all day! We hoped to make it to Sioux Falls to have lunch with Mommy's best friend Jannelle. While we probably could have done that, we decided that if the boys stood any chance of actually eating lunch, we needed to stop at a McDonald's WITHOUT a playland before we met Jannelle.


If you are ever in Sioux Falls SD and need a good place to let your kids go wild, Spencer highly recommends the McDonald's playland on 22nd Street! While the girls talked, the boys went crazy playing! Spencer is the red blur of motion shown in the lower portion of the above picture.

Road Trip - Day 1!

With Spencer well on his way to recovery, he, Brian and Mommy are starting out on a big adventure today. The three of us are driving to South Dakota to visit Grandma and Grandpa! We are disappointed that Daddy has to stay home to work, but we are also fortunate that he is busy enough with work that he needs to stay home! Our goal for today is to go as far as Mason City Iowa. Our normal goal is to go as far as Great Grandma's house in Clear Lake Iowa but since she isn't home, we decided to really shake things up! We are going to stay with Uncle Dave and Aunt Karrie who live about 10 miles down the road from Great Grandma's house. At the half way point of our drive today, we stopped at "Iowa 80", a HUGE truck stop! After having lunch.......................

.......................we ended up spending more time here than we anticipated but only because there was just so much to do and see! The arcade was a big hit with the boys since they could run all over the place and crawl around the games!

Who knows, perhaps you are looking at a future Nascar driver! Once we finally got back on the road, we made it to Mason City in time to play with some of Uncle Dave and Aunt Karrie's toys before calling it a night and going to bed.

Lets Talk Turkey!

This is Spencer with the stuffed turkey that Uncle Corey sent him for Thanksgiving. He looks just as cute cuddling it now as he did last November. Thanks again Uncle Corey!

Hitch'in A Ride

Mommy and Daddy have an exercise bike that we are not using right now so Grandma is going to borrow it. Before we brought it over to her house though, Spencer wanted to go for a ride.

Even though Spencer has only had a couple doses of his medication, there has already been a noticeable effect. Not only is his cough going away, he is much more willing to drink the liquids we have been pushing on him and his appetite is basically back to normal.

Doctor's Visit

Spencer's cough hasn't gotten any better so Mommy and the boys went to our doctors office his afternoon to pay a visit to our pediatrician. She verified what we knew (that he has a bad cold) but she was also able to confirm that his lungs were clear, something we had been worried about. She did suggest that Spencer take an antibiotic for the next 10 days to clear up the yuck in his chest faster. Once we had picked up the medicine, Spencer grabbed the measuring spoon and started reading through his instructions. He said he's going to be fine but just to be safe, he should probably not drive or operate any heavy equipment for the next 10 days.

Comb Out

Spencer may not have a lot of hair, but he takes very good care of what hair he does have! He likes to use either his giraffe comb or this lion brush to keep himself well groomed at all times.

Layin' Low

While Mommy finished up dinner this evening, Daddy jumped into the role of acting night nurse. He had two patients this evening but Spencer was the one requiring the most attention. Spencer has had colds before but they have always been very minor. This one has really knocked him for a loop! Watching your kids when they aren't feeling well and knowing there is basically nothing you can to do fix it has got to be one of the toughest parts of being a parent!

Sick Bay

Red cheeks, a runny nose, a touch of a temperature and an ugly cough. Put them all together and what do you get? Unfortunately, at the moment you get Spencer. Both Spencer and his brother are amazingly good natured little boys - even when they aren't feeling 100% (something their parents are eternally grateful for)!

Whenever the boys are feeling a little under the weather, Mommy or Daddy pull out our space age thermometer. With a quick swipe across their forehead, it instantly displays their temperature. Once the boys see it come out, they each want to do it themselves - which is what Spencer is doing in this picture.

Mad Scientist

Spencer often hears jokes about how he has inherited his fathers hair line. Be that as it may, he definitely has a bunch of thick lush luxurious hair in the back! This mass of hair, which is usually sticking out in all directions, has earned Spencer the nickname of "The Mad Scientist"! Mommy and Daddy had always assumed that when it came time for him to have his official 1st haircut, he would be getting a complete cut. We probably can't hold off much longer getting those nice long locks of his trimmed up in the back though!

Snow Cone Anyone?

The boys love it when Daddy brings them a hand full of snow from outside! Even though Daddy only gives them small snowballs, I'm still surprised that they continue holding onto them, especially once their hands get cold. Maybe it's because the snowballs never stick around long. They either melt into a little puddle or are gobbled up!

More Chompers!

We haven't provided you with a "New Teeth" update recently so here is the latest on Spencer's chompers. As you can see from the picture, he has quite a few new teeth so eating real people food at meal time is getting easier and easier for him! The current tooth tally is as follows: he has 6 teeth on the top, four of which are in the front. He has 5 on the bottom, three of which are in the front. All this makes for a little boy with a very cute and charming smile!

What-Cha Making?

What happens if your school cancels classes due to the weather, your Daddy has to go to work and your Mommy has jury duty? If you are Brian and Spencer, it means you get very excited because your cousins Krista and Erika get to come play at your house today! Mommy had planned on making some donuts today and she was thrilled that Krista and Erika volunteered to help her! Spencer didn't care what was being made in the kitchen just as long as he could be a part of it! The boy's let the girls take care of the measuring and mixing while they stood by (literally) doing some coloring.

Krista and Erika did a wonderful job mixing up the donut batter but the recipe said it needed to chill in the refrigerator for a few hours. Spencer had NO problem with that since it meant he got some more individual playtime with the girls!

Since the girls had to go home before the donuts were finished, they had to wait until this evening to be able to taste their creation. Mommy dropped some off at their house this evening on her way to choir practice. Spencer couldn't possibly wait that long though. When he saw that there were donuts that needed sampling - he immediately volunteered! After tasted them, he said that Krista and Erika can come make donuts here anytime!

Upper Case......Lower Case

We have an old keyboard that no longer works. The cord has been cut off so it has become the boy's newest toy! Spencer, like his brother, is a big button pusher so he loves tapping away at those keys!

Color Me Cute!

When the boys were finished with their lunch today, they decided to do some art work. Spencer wasn't as interested at first, but as soon as he saw what his brother was doing he grabbed some crayons and got to work too!

Spencer's nose is a little redder than it normally is because he took a little tumble. While he and his brother were playing, Spencer lost his balance and went face forward onto the area rug. He got a good scare as well as a nice little rug burn on the tip of his nose but aside that, was back to running and playing moments later!

No-No-No!

There is a new movie coming out called "Yes Man".....Spencer is NOT that man! He loves using his "no" word and does so repeatedly. Our conversations with Spencer often go something like this.

Mommy or Daddy: "Spencer, do you want some milk?"

Spencer: "No" (as he reaches out and takes his sippy cup filled with milk)

Mommy or Daddy: "Spencer, let's put your coat on so we can go."

Spencer: "No" (as he comes over to let you put his coat on him)

Mommy or Daddy: "Spencer, are you being naughty?"

Spencer: "No" (as he continues to crawl up onto the end table)

This picture was taken yesterday while we were getting ready to go to the store. I'm not sure what I had just asked him, but he was answering me with a "no" when I snapped the picture!

More Fun In The Snow!

We had a lot of fun playing in the snow yesterday. In fact, we had so much fun that Mommy has two days worth of snowy blog pictures to share with you!

Once we got back to the house after yesterday's walk, Spencer decided it was time to get out of the sled and stretch his legs.

After watching Daddy make a snow angel........

......Spencer wanted to try to make one too!

(This photo goes back a couple days ago to the afternoon it began looking like our snow was finally starting to taper off.) Daddy announced that he was going outside to start up the snow blower. A while later he he came back into the house. Our driveway and sidewalks were all clear and in addition, this "guy" was sticking out of the big snowbank in our front yard! I guess it goes without saying that Brian and Spencer aren't the only boys at our house who love playing in the snow!

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

We have received quite a bit of snow over the past couple days and this afternoon, we went out to play in it! Brian walked along side and let Spencer ride in the sled solo.

Mommy and Daddy weren't sure how far away from the house we would get before Spencer decided he was done riding. We were pleasantly surprised that he never even suggested getting out and instead was completely content to lean back and enjoy the ride for the entire walk!

Do you think Spencer had fun playing in the snow? Take a look at this face and you tell us!!!

"No" Means I'll Do It Anyway!

Considering how much Spencer loves to climb, it's amazing that he doesn't have more bumps and bruises! When Spencer decides to do something (ie: climb something he has been told repeatedly not to climb), he becomes a very determined little boy! He smiles at you while being scolded and told to get down. Verbal reprimands basically means nothing to him so he needs to be physically removed. While he is being pulled off whatever he was climbing, his whole body stiffens up like a board until he is put back on the floor. Once his feet touch the ground he heads right back to where ever he was just removed from so that he can do it again!

Read Any Good Books Lately?

Mommy and Daddy are looking forward to Spencer getting past the stage where he pulls all the books off the book shelf. Brian did the same thing but we can't remember anymore how long his book tossing fascination stage lasted. It is sure a lot more fun to just READ them the books instead of putting all the books back on the shelves........4.....5......6.....times a day!

Will That Be Cash or Charge?

We have mentioned before that the boys got a toy cash register for Christmas. At the moment it is one of Spencer's favorite things to play with. He may not be old enough to push his own shopping cart at the grocery store yet but he can pretend he is the cashier!

***For those of you who asked, the "coins" we use are actually poker chips. They make good money and are big enough that someone (aka: Spencer) isn't as tempted to put them in his mouth.

Critic's Corner

It's not uncommon to see Spencer browsing reading material as he stands at the book shelf in Brian's room. It's also not uncommon to see the majority of those books on the floor at his feet moments after he has started his browsing! Today he latched onto this Thomas the Train book and took it everywhere with him! Spencer is learning more and more words but it has to be his idea if he decides to let anyone else hear them. For example, Mommy was changing Brian's diaper while Spencer took this book off the shelf this morning. As he grabbed it he said "Thomas" very clearly. He refused to say it again when Mommy asked him to tell Daddy who the book was about though. He will say Mommy when asked "can you say Mommy?" but he still insists upon calling everyone Daddy. While Mommy and Brian were working on their numbers, Spencer would call out a "nine" or "ten" too! He still does a lot of babbling, but when he does say a word, it's very clear and easy to understand!

Indoor Playground

Mommy and the boys decided we needed to go on a mall outing today. The primary purpose of our trip was for the boys to be able to run off some steam in their play area. Spencer had a strong temptation to climb the steps that led to the slide so apparently he has forgotten that the last time he climbed those steps and went down the slide, he didn't enjoy it very much! Mommy tried to keep in interest away from the slide by encouraging him to take advantage of all the other things he could play on that didn't involve steps. He had a lot of fun crawling in........

.........and out of this tunnel!