Monday, April 15, 2013

Is it Spring Yet?



Like many parts of the country, we have been very slow at receiving Spring this year.  It has been brutal! With an adventurous outdoorsman like Thomas, staying cooped up in the house is not an easy thing! Finally the weather has started to warm up and spring has started to come out.  Sadly, it is coming right before my trip to Utah. I am so sad I will miss the peak of the blossoms here in Columbus. Spring here is my favorite time of the year, it is so gorgeous.  Here is a picture of the little man and his papa inspecting an early spring bloom. 

 Easter this year was quite chilly. Thomas had to wear his winter coat out on the egg hunt. He had a lot of fun looking for treats and got quite the jackpot. I think we had more candy than from trick or treating. This holiday business really brings a lot more candy into the house having a kid. I think it is so cute when Lincoln holds Thomas' hand. They are just so sweet and innocent!
 On one of our warmer days we went out looking for birds. Thomas LOVES birds these days! He has come to identify the Robin, Cardinal, Bluejay, Woodpecker, Owl, Turkey, Ducks and Geese. He is so cute when he hears the birds he says, "Mama! Hear it? Robin! Hi Robin!" The other day we were out on our nightly walks and he saw 2 woodpeckers in a tree. He got so excited! He still talks about the "Two woodpeckers!" This afternoon in fact we saw a baby woodpecker in our backyard and Thomas got really excited. Unfortunately it flew away right about the time dinner was ready and He was NOT happy about abandoning his search for that baby woodpecker.  Thomas just loves being outside and exploring things.

 On one of our colder days a few of my friends and I took the kids on a tour of the Upper Arlington fire station. Here is fireman Don showing the boys where the fireman sleep.  I just love how little the boys are next to him! They were quite intimidated by him at first!
 Thomas was actually pretty nervous the entire tour. This picture sums it up. He basically stayed in a corner until I would carry him along. Those big trucks are intimidating! The funny thing was that as soon as we got in the car to go home he couldn't stop saying, "Thank you firetrucks! Thank you fireman! Goodbye Firetrucks!" And of course he has asked to see the pictures everyday and he has to hear the story of how he and Lincoln saw the firetrucks before he goes to sleep.
 This is about as close as he would get to any of the trucks without bursting into tears.
 He was a bit more comfortable with the "tractors" as he calls them.

 Just look at that handsome face! I couldn't get him to put the hat on for the pictures though, darn it!
 We have started working at our garden, getting the soil ready for planting. Thomas has loved this. Every morning he says, "Mama, dig hole?" Its actually been really fun going out and working together.  He has his little tools and just digs away while I work. He is a very hard worker! Of course it has taken me ages to get anywhere, and just today Clint spent 30 minutes out in the year and got done more than I have the entire week. I am just not cut out for manual labor :)
 Here Thomas is taking a little break from the grueling labor to enjoy watching the neighbors mow their lawn. Doesn't he look so cute in his work clothes and boots?
Thomas showing Papa the appropriate raking techniques.
 "My Turn!" This is probably Thomas' favorite saying.
Try as he might, he couldn't get that wheel barrow to move. 
This little man is just too cute for words! I just can't get enough of him!

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Having a Ball with Papa


This little boy absolutely adores his Papa, so it was a good thing we had a whole week with him during his spring vacation.  Here we are having an FHE lesson on birds. Thomas LOVED it! He might just be a budding birder like his dad. I'm not sure who got more excited, Clint or Thomas. Cute boys!
Thomas found his Dad's sweatshirt one day and insisted on wearing it. He looked a little like ET, but he sure looked cute. He is one silly little monkey! He was mad at me when I took it off, I had to put it back on and let him wear it for a while. 
We loved all of our time together.  Of course I would have loved it more if it hadn't snowed. Arg! I'm so sick of the winter. Clint and Thomas made the most of it and made a family of snowmen in the back yard. Thomas has a very low snow tolerance, so mainly Clint made the snowmen. 

 Aren't the Snow Allred's cute???
 We also made a little trip to one of our favorite places, COSI, the Children's museum here in Columbus. It is such a fun place and Thomas LOVES it. It is even better when we get to go with Clint. Here is Thomas playing anchorman. His newscasts consist of "Hi!" and "Bye Bye!" Just the kind of news I like to watch. And what a handsome anchor he is.


Thomas and Papa riding in the old time carriage
 We also decided to have a family outing at the bowling alley. Thomas had a grand ol' time.  He is such a curious boy and loves trying new things.  Doesn't he look so small standing in front of our lane? What a cutie.  He woke up the next morning asking when we would be going bowling again. Um...maybe in a few years? :)

 Wow! what a strong boy! They had balls for the kids that weighed like 4 pounds. Thomas did NOT want any help from Papa.
 Here he is getting into form. He is so cute.
 Thomas got a little distracted half-way through our game when he saw the flashing lights of the arcade. He particularly liked this one with semi-trucks.
 Papa had to drag him back to the game.
 You're up Thomas!
 Keep your eye on the prize!


Afterwards, for FHE we made sugar cookies. Thomas really loves to help. Well he pretty much demands to help. His most common phrase these days is, "My Turn!" So yeah  our cookies turned out pretty interesting. They were rolled a little thin in spots and had some little finger prints, but tasted great.   We made some cars, trucks and little T's for Thomas.  He asks for T for Thomas for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Thomas would sneak bites of the cookie dough and say, "Mmmmm!!!!!" Really loudly. He is so funny! He cracks me up.  We have so much fun together. Call me crazy, but a night home making cookies and dancing in the living room singing "Drive My Car" is about the perfect way to spend a family vacation if you ask me.