Brady's 1st Tooth and 1st Ski Lesson

After a week of wiggling, Brady lost his first tooth!  The magic moment came while Brady was chewing on Captain America's head in the tubby and Parker bumped him, out popped the tooth and a little bit of blood.  Daddy was quick to rescue the tooth so it didn't go down the drain.  Brady was very excited but he did turn a little pale after he saw and tasted the blood.  We put the tooth in a plastic bag and under his pillow for the tooth fairy.  In the morning Brady woke up to a $1 under his pillow, he was so excited!

 4 Years Old and Lost A Tooth!

This past weekend Brady also had his 1st two-hour ski lesson at Wachusett.  This was good for Brady to help him forget his crash in Vermont and put him in a group lesson with other kids his age.  They skied on the small hill going up the magic carpet and down the hill on their own.  He practiced his pizza wedge to slow down, turning, and side stepping up hill.  Brady had a great day and at the end of the lesson asked the teachers if he could do "just one more?"  He ended on a high note.  The temps have really warmed up this week and our 2ft of snow is melting fast, we probably have ~9" left.  It's getting wet and sticky, good snowman snow.  Hoping it hangs around long enough for one more ski trip north to Cranmore so we can use our vouchers.

So Proud Of Our Little Man

With all the snow we've had fun sledding in the backyard.  We have the perfect hill for sledding, as long as you can stop and not crash in the woods at the end.  We've broken a few sleds and bought a few new ones.  We have a long sled that likes to go really fast and you can put 3 people on the sled.  We've also tried shorter sleds, saucers, and a blow up tube.  The boys are getting old enough they now ride together without a grown up and they just have a blast!

Brady and Parker Sledding In Our Backyard

Happy Winter Everyone!!!

Two Valentine's Studs

The boys had a great Valentine's day.  This year Brady wrote his own Valentine's cards to his classmates writing both their name and his.  He's getting so grown up!  We did Parker's for him.  The boys had a lot of fun exchanging cards with their classmates.  Then they had a school wide Sweetheart Formal including the parents dressing up.  Mommy had to work late (boo) so didn't get to go.  Daddy dressed up and did a great job capturing photos.  Keira (TX) is to Brady like Maddie (MA) is to Parker, and Parker had a great time playing with the heart balloon with Maddie.  They were so cute!  Brady had more fun jumping to the music with his classmate Owen.  Both looked little studs in their formal attire.

Valentine's From Daycare

Two Little Studs Ready for the Formal

Maddie and Parker 

Daddy and His Boys

Christmas 2016 and New Years

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

Our family had a great Christmas.  Parker was awake but we had to wake up Brady Christmas morning.  The boys emptied their stockings and opened all their toys.  This year Brady got a ski helmet (from Mom and Dad) and goggles (from Parker) while Parker got a Thomas the train set (from Mom and Dad) and talking Blaze monster machine (from Brady).  They also got new sneakers, action figures, and an RC digger from Santa.  The boys were spoiled by Keira getting PJ masks and capes.  Parker is currently Catboy and Brady is Geko but it switches every once in a while.  Later in the day the boys got to see Grandpa Bob and Grammie Terry, and Uncle Paul with Darcie, Courtney, and Lewis.  The boys had lots of fun opening gifts and spending time with the family.  This was also the first day Parker went without a nap.  All the visitors and activity and the boys were exhausted, they slept well that night!

Our Christmas Hams

Later in the week we made a trip north to see great Grandma.  We also got to see Uncle Skip and Aunt Rose, all their grandkids, Aunt Diane, and cousin Natalie.  Gram is now 93 and still looks great.  Her memory is fading but she gets around with her walker and a lot of help from Aunt Diane and Natalie.  We had a great day visiting with the family and the boys got to do some sledding with their cousins.  Brady tried the saucer and sled, he even tried going down the hill surfing on the sled.  Parker loved the saucer and kept asking for "more time".  Both boys loved the snow and the little jump their cousins built.  After some sledding Daddy rolled up a snowman, it was huge!

Snowman with the big cousins

After a day in the snow, we went to visit one of Mommy's high school friends (and maid of honor) Erin.  Was great to see her, have the kiddos play together, and catch up with her family.  Funny how no one seems to age and we can talk stories for hours like things happened just yesterday.  Berta came over too and Mommy had her favorite pitcher-catcher combo to talk about the good old days of high school softball playoffs.

The next couple of days we visited with Daddy's family in New Jersey.  The first night we ate dinner with all Daddy's uncles and their families.  Was great to see everyone and amazing how much the kids (ie Dana) have grown.  We also got to toast George and Melissa since we missed their wedding.  The next day the boys got to spend some quality time with Grandma and Grandpa Seminara.  Parker helped Grandpa make pancakes.  The boys opened their gifts and spent a good couple of hours playing with their new race tracks.  Mom and Dad also got a quick escape to see a movie.  We also got to spend some time with Jennie and Andy who are now a few shorts months away from their wedding.  No trip to NJ is complete without a visit to the skating rink where Parker and Brady got to show Grandma and Grandpa their skating skills.  Grandpa even got some time on the ice.  Parker did great taking steps on his own, and Brady used a walker to get even faster cruising around the ice, even saying "I want to skate every day".

Christmas with the Seminaras

Skating in New Jersey

Back in Mass we got ready for New Years.  Grandpa Bob and Grammie Terry came down to ring in the new year.  The boys got to spend more quality time with their grandparents and caught some of the new years scenes from around the world.  The boys didn't make it to midnight, but the grandparents did!  Daddy was little under the weather but woke just after midnight to see the replay from Boston.  The next day the Grandparents babysat so Mom and Dad could get a few runs at the local ski mountain.  We weren't even sore the next day!  And we spent today, the last day of our holiday vacation, on the same slopes but this time with the boys.  Parker did amazing.  After a bit of a struggle getting his ski boots on, he played in the snow bank, then he was ready to hit the slopes.  He enjoyed chasing Mommy and Daddy down the run.  Brady had a good day too, he did great on the magic carpet and rode his first chair lift with little assistance from Mom.  Of course Brady likes to go fast so he preferred skiing with Mom and Dad's assistance instead of going on his own.  After several runs the boys were exhausted and it was time to head home.

Skiing at Wachusett Mountain (MA)

We are looking forward to a great 2017!!!

Thanksgiving & Ready for the Holidays

We had a great Thanksgiving with our family.  Dave & Nancy came from NJ and stayed a few days.  The Muzzey family came down and we had the grandparents and all the uncles.  We brought our Texas tradition to the northeast and fried not one but two turkeys.  Our pot is a little small so this was key to having leftovers haha.  Everyone brought sides and dessert and we were a bunch of stuffed turkeys when all was said and done.  Parker and Brady hung in as long as they could eating a little before Parker was pooped and had to take a nap.  It was great to see everyone and get to host our family at our house.  Another perk of living in the northeast!

Thanksgiving with the Family

Enjoying the Thanksgiving Parade at Plymouth Rock MA

Since Thanksgiving the boys have been getting in the Christmas holiday spirit.  Mom found some toddler skates at the kids consignment store so we took Parker out on the ice for the first time.  It was fun to skate all as a family.  Brady is such an independent spirit, he tells us "I can do it" and off he goes without Mom and Dad.  He skates in a little shuffle of his feet but is able to keep his balance and can get up from the ice all on his own.  Parker had a blast too, holding onto Daddy's arms while Daddy skated him around.  He actually cried when we got off the ice.  Following public skate was a local boys team hockey game and our boys were just fascinated watching the big kids.  Since then they've been wearing their Bruins sweatshirts from Uncle Paul.

Parker's First Time on Ice Skates

We got our Christmas tree from the same tree farm this year.  The boys had fun running through the maze of trees, chasing each other, and listening for the tractor.  We got a healthy tree that just fits in our living room and drinks a ton of water.  Was a good thing we had a new tree stand this year although Mom accidentally overfilled it and soaked the carpet.

Our Elves Decorating the Tree

We also took part in our new holiday tradition of journeying to NH to ride the Polar Express.  This year we rode it out of North Conway and it was certainly polar (-3 degrees!).  They boys enjoyed the train, the lights, the hot coca, stamping and mailing Brady's letter to Santa, and visiting the North Pole.  Brady was very excited to see the elves workshop and caroling.  Parker was excited to watch Brady and the other kids.  This year for Christmas Brady asked for a Transformer, special glasses (virtual reality), and Batman.  Parker asked for toys and diggers.  I'm sure Santa was listening.  Was also fun for the boys to see Santa as he came around to say hi to all the boys and girls.

Riding the Polar Express

The boys have been enjoying all the activity of the holiday season.  They got to attend the tree lighting in the Chelmsford town center to include seeing Santa and taking tractor and horse drawn hay rides.  They also got to visit Daddy's work to see Santa and get a special gift.  After the ride on the Polar Express we took the boys to the ski slopes for Parker's first time on skis.  Parker did great and kept saying "I'm skiing!"  Mr Independent again, Brady hopped on his skis and took off down the slope without Mom and Dad.  Unfortunately skiing was a bit of a bust as after just one run the power went out on the magic carpet and we had to quit for the day (snowplow hit a pole and took out power).  But given how great the boys did we can't wait to try again!

Parker's First Time Skiing at Mt Cranmore

Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday, Merry Christmas!

Parker's 2.5 Year Checkup

Parker had his 2.5 year check up yesterday.  He weighed in at 24.8 lbs (4%) and 34.25 inches (13%), gaining 2 lbs and 3 inches in 6 months.  We could tell he was getting taller because he has moved to his 2T pajamas and shirts although his legs are still short and we have to roll his pants so he doesn't run out of them haha.  He was such a great little boy at his checkup, he didn't even cry when he got his flu shot.  Daddy rewarded him with a trip to get some ice cream which he loved.

This morning when Mommy woke him up we asked him who his best friend was at school.  After thinking about it he said Megan his teacher.  When we asked which kid is his best friend he said Brady.  When we asked which kid in his class he said Caleb and Tyler.  So cute to see his love for his teachers, brother, and friends!

Halloween 2016

For Halloween this year Brady picked the "blue one" teenage mutant ninja turtle costume (Leonardo).  That worked well for us since we could pick another turtle for Parker's costume.  In the end we picked Michelangelo for Parker for his happy go lucky personality.  The Halloween festivities began with the annual party at daycare.  Brady was all into his costume and ready to go, but Parker being two years old, had a different opinion and wouldn't let us put on his costume until we were in the daycare parking lot.  But once Parker had his costume on he was all into being a ninja turtle and the school party.  The daycare did a nice job too with the pumpkin decorating contest, cookie decorating, dance room, and guessing the slimy substances.  The boys ran around with their friends Sam and Issac, who are the same ages, and had a good time.

Next came Halloween weekend.  This year a new thing for kids was "trunk or treat" which works really well for little kids because it's run by churches or schools mid day so they don't have to walk house to house at night and get bored or freeze.  We went to the Cornerstone Congregational Church in Westford for their trunk or treat.  Different church members decorated the trunks of their cars and put out games for the kids to play.  The kids would play the game then get to pick a piece of candy.  Some of the games were cornhole, archer, pin the banana on the tree, etc.  They also had face painting.  While it was small, the boys had fun, and were able to get some candy.  Brady had fun this year learning about the different types of candy and what they taste like.  So far they're all his favorite haha.  Grandpa Bob came down and he and Grandma Reggie had just as much fun as the boys.

That night we took the boys to the Heart Pond pumpkin armada where we lighted and put on floats two of our pumpkins.  Daddy did a great job carving 4 pumpkins for us this year.  We put two of the smaller ones on the floats.  It was really nice seeing all the different carvings by the town people and see it all aglow on the water.  Speaking of pumpkins, this year the Rise of the Jack-O-Lanterns opened in Boston and we met Uncle Kevin, Aunt Val, and baby Nolan in the city to see all the pumpkins.  It was amazing!  Must have taken a ton of artisans and pumpkins to put it all together.  It was hosted at the Seaport and once inside they had a huge room filled with all different carved pumpkins including some put together to create symbols or animals.  Some used regular pumpkins and some used gourds.  The most elaborate carvings were peeled into the skin of the pumpkin, not cut in.  The boys weren't that into it, they were more happy dancing in the dark, but it was cool for the grown ups.  Baby Nolan preferred to get a little shut eye.

Halloween night fell on a Monday this year, and since the boys had a big Halloween weekend, we kept it low key.  Daddy was on a business trip, so Grandma Reggie and Mom took the boys just to the neighbors houses.  We don't get many trick or treaters on our quiet street so it was nice for the neighbors to see some kids.

Overall the boys had a great Halloween, cowabunga dudes!

Daycare Halloween Party and Mommy's Painted Pumpkin (we didn't win)

Fun at Trunk or Treat at the Cornerstone Congregational Church

Rise of the Jack-o-Lanterns

Carving pumpkins

Trick or Treating at the Neighbors