Back To School

We are back to school and loving it! Both Colby and Brody love school so much.

Colby loves having a routine and keeping track of his schedule all day. He has his day planned down to the minute. Routine and rigid schedules are comforting to him and we have learned this summer that Colby loves to check the clock. He has me on a schedule. He will even tell me when I need to start preparing dinner. I just bought him a "silly band" watch, and he has loved wearing it. He will say, "mom it's 7:07, 23 more minutes until I get to leave, or mom it's 4:24 - 36 more minutes till dinner time..you should probably start dinner."

I can't believe how grown up Brody looks in this picture. He loves his school. He is our social butterfly for sure! Where Colby loves school because he loves to do school work, Brody loves school because he loves people and "friends." We started at one school that just wasn't right, but now have settled at a great school. Discovery Day (at the Episcopal church up the road). He only has 7 kids in his class, and Mrs. Longo his teacher is incredible! He goes three days a week - for a long time (8:30-2:30), and even though I miss him; it it is perfect for him. We are so proud of Brody. He needed to be potty trained for school, and he did it! In less than a week! He has only had 2 accidents and they were now more than a week ago!! I am so glad not to have 2 in diapers anymore! We are hoping for a fantastic school year!

Big Stuff

Brody turned 3 this August, but has been "big" for quite a while now. He gets really angry if you call him "little" and don't ever, ever say b-a-b-y. He is NOT the b-a-b-y anymore. We just won't tell him he will always be my baby no matter how big he gets!

Poor Brody has gotten the shaft 2 years in a row. His birthdays, because of the move last year, and this year because of Kellan have been pretty low key. Thankfully Brody is such an easy going sweet boy - he doesn't expect more or know any different.

This year we started off his birthday celebration with a few presents as soon as he woke up. Then I went on the adventure of a lifetime and embarked on my first journey out of the house with all 3 - alone. I am happy to report, I survived and so did the kids. We went to "Hoppin House" and Brody and Colby bounced, climbed, hopped, and slid until they couldn't anymore. Then afterward I took them to Chick-Fil-A for lunch. I tried to take some pictures at the "Hoppin House" but between holding baby and my phone freezing every 3 seconds...nothing really turned out.

Matt brought home Rudy's (BBQ) for dinner and then we went to Dairy Queen for birthday ice cream!

As you can see Brody is in full on Ham mode. This is my Brody. He is our socialite, totally silly, and loud, very loud! We love him so very much!

A few days after Brody's birthday we had a party. We just invited a few neighbors and friends and watched RIO in the backyard. Brody picked out a batman cake, and we had popcorn and way too much candy. Brody was so excited! He had the best time.

Some things we absolutely love that Brody says right now (justice can't be done unless you hear his sweet little voice and inflection...but I don't want to forget it):

"Watch this...hurry...your gonna miss it"

"That's a good ideal (idea)"

"What the heck!"

"I told you"

"Whatever"

"Smarshmellow" (marshmallow)

"Tis-morning" (this morning)

Brody still is in love with his "bear bears" -he strokes the tags on the back of the bear to fall asleep.

His favorite things to play with right now are cars, guns, balls, and his dog Benji.

He is still a really picky eater - no vegetables at all really -but his favorite foods are of course all junk - pepperoni, most any cracker or carb, chocolate, Rudy's BBQ, smarshmallows, french fries, and macaroni & cheese.

Favorite color - blue

Favorite Tv Shows - America's Got Talent, America's Funniest Home Videos, Tom & Jerry

Happy Birthday Brody! We love you!

Benji

Our little puppy has grown into a very large puppy! Now weighing 68lbs at 7 months.

He is still truly a puppy. Eating and Chewing everything he can sink his teeth into. He really has been a Marley at times. No joke...maybe worse :) But the fun we are having with him is worth all that. Maybe. Don't let me think about that too long.

Here he is in all his lanky glory about a month ago. Now he is totally filling out and we are beginning to see his beautiful form we searched so long and hard for when we were looking at breeders. He loves to chase and play with the boys, and they love to play with him and give him treats.

Weekend before last we ventured out to the pond for the first time. The times I have gotten out the hose, he has been deathly afraid of the water, and I was bound and determined to have a lab that loves water...what lab doesn't, right? It was a perfect morning. When we got to the pond we happened to meet another lab "Boss" there who was able to show Benji the ropes, and teach him a thing or two about who really is boss...which was perfect for our "energetic" puppy who still needs to learn his manners.

He took right to swimming, and fetching and we have been back several times with the boys.

2 Months

It's hard to believe that my precious baby is 2 months old. Our house had a revolving door of guests from the week before Kellan was born until he was almost 6 weeks old. At times it was a little chaotic, but I am so glad that everyone got to meet him and love on him a little. Michelle and Mom came at the end of July when he was about a month old.

Mel, was really the first one to hold him "so long." He was such a sleepy baby the first 3 weeks, we didn't hold him all that much, because he was happy to be laid down and sleep for several hours.

Colby and Brody have been the best big brothers. Colby especially has been such a helper, and is so interested in his new brother. He loves to help with diaper changes.

By the time my mama got here, he was nearly 4 weeks old, and he was beginning to show the signs of a true Greenwald baby - what I mean is - all my babies have had their fair share of difficulties as little ones, and he was now no exception (darn it). He loved my mama though, and she new just how to hold him and get him to sleep. It was so good to have our Gram here!

Colby and Brody both think that giving him a bath is the coolest thing! They both loved to help wash him with the wash cloth, and the minute he peed in the tub - it was mayhem. We got a major case of the sillys- gotta love boys!

Brody has been a very sweet big brother. He has gone through a little bit of a rough time adjusting to new baby, but he really has worked most of that out now. I love this picture. Even though you can barely see Brody - you can see they are both smiling- at each other.

This is our sweet boy truly 2 months old.

Where does the time go? With Brody and Colby now in school, it is really strange just me and baby - all alone - kind of nice - but I can't help but feel something is missing. I am reminded of Pres. Monson's conference talk where he talks about children growing up and leaving the house, and how all too soon we will dearly miss the things that might have been challenging in the raising of our children. I do...I already feel it...time goes by too quickly.

Even though time has slipped away, the days have really seemed so long at times. I am trying my absolute best to cherish each moment, and be grateful for the gift of family and motherhood.

It is truly a blessing.

Welcome Little One

"On the day you were born it was love at first sight. I welcomed you, little one, and held you so tight.

My heart simply grew bigger in size, the first time I looked into your sweet eyes.

Hope and happiness danced in the air. Joy filled my heart and spread everywhere.

I made a promise to you on that very day. This, my precious child, is what I had to say...

I'll cherish the things that are uniquely you- Your talents, your hopes, and your wishes, too.

I'll rock you to sleep as I sing you a song. I'll read you stories as you follow along.

I'll show you the beauty of the stars in the sky. My love will be with you as the years go by.

I'll teach you to see life from different points of view. And be there to help make your dreams come true.

The world became a more wonderful place The moment I saw your beautiful face...

Welcome Little One! -Sandra Magsamen-

I am in love with these pictures and of course my sweet Kellan. It is the first time I have ever had professional pictures taken of my babies, and I owe it all to my dear friend Tara. Thank you so much for this amazing gift, Tara, that I will treasure always! Thank you Mama for this sweet book you gave me!

http://www.foreverblissphotography.com/

The 4th

Our fourth of July was a simple one. The boys and Matt kicked it off with a bike parade that our neighborhood sponsors. The kids all decorate their bikes/scooter and ride from the welcome center to the rec center with fire truck and police car escorts. Colby and Brody had a lot of fun decorating their bikes and got ribbons for participating. At the rec center they had bounce houses, cotton candy, water games, and all kinds of fun things for the kids to do.

That afternoon Matt's mom (Taya) came in town to meet Kellan and help. It was so great to have her here. I don't know how we forget, but we never get many pictures. This was right after she got here - and we didn't take another picture! How sad is that? We will blame it on sleep deprivation and two other monkeys that never let you rest one minute :)

Thank goodness we bought a bunch of fireworks at New Years and had extra b/c in our county fireworks were completely banned because of the drought. No one even put on shows. So we obeyed the ban mostly - we didn't do our other fireworks, but what would the fourth be without a little sparkle? We had about 20 sparklers- and we used all of them!

A few days after the 4th was my birthday. It was pretty quiet too! That was fine by me - Taya really took care of everything for the boys - so I think I got a couple of naps - got to open all sorts of packages from friends and family and had a nice dinner with everyone that night. Taya even bought me a cake! One little package arrived a month early. It was a great birthday. I have so much to be thankful for!