Happy Birthday Daddy!

Happy Birthday to the BEST Daddy in the world!!!

Our Daddy is the best because:

W - Wonderful - Our Daddy is so wonderful because he will take the time to let us explore.

E - Easy Going - We are the luckiest kids alive, because our Daddy has tons of patience.

S - Super Dad - Our Daddy is super because he would do anything to make us happy.

L - Love - Our Daddy is the best, because he shows us how much he loves us everyday.

E - Early - Our Daddy is the best because he wakes up very early; and sometimes very late.

Y - Yay - We learned to say Yay! at a very early age, because our Daddy knows how to have fun.

P - Playful - We have the best Daddy ever, because he is never to busy to play with us.

A - Admiration - We really admire our Daddy, and hope someday we can be just like him.

R - Ready - Our Daddy has gotten really good at getting us ready in the morning - ponytail and all!

K - Kisses - We like to give our Daddy kisses - his are the best, because they tickle too!

E - Excellent Eggs - We think Daddy makes the BEST eggs ever; we always eat them all gone.

R - Regular - Our Daddy might seem like just a regular guy, but we know he's the BEST!

The Short Story

Wes got a new JOB!!  WOOO HOOOO!  I'm so proud!

Days until W is my age: 2 (now he can stop calling me old)
Trips to the Omaha Zoo: 2
Days until potty training begins: 28 (AHHHHH!)
Charlotte's newest counter find: Oreo Cake

my silly boy

Calvin Franklin
aka: Cal, Calvy, Buddy, Pal

My Calvy; my sweetie pie boy.  I love his fantastic laugh and the way he can fill an entire room with it.  He is a perfect example of what little boys should be.  LOUD and messy, quiet and sweet.  He is such a small little guy, but boy does he know how to get things done!  We're both convinced Calvin will be quite the athlete, and I know his Daddy LOVES playing catch with him.  Calvy especially loves to swing a bat or golf club, with what appears to be quite good form! :) (to my biased eye anyways)

Calvin is the cuddly guy in this family.  He LOVES his Daddy and pretty much follows him everywhere.  Cal especially loves mowing the yard with Wes.  I think though that if we would let him, he would sit in Wes's old red car all day and "drive".  He's such a curious little person; everything must be turned and pulled and investigated.

It's hard to get any pictures of Calvin, he's an elusive little man when he's awake...always on the go.  There is never a dull moment when this little gift from above is around!

Cal's all-time favorite indoor activity is finding a car, and making anything a road.  He plays all by himself and is completely content to just drive and drive.  No interruptions, PLEASE!!
























Calvy's Main Man: DADDY!!

He loves Wes so completely it melts my heart.  Obviously I would love some Mama time once in a while, but I couldn't be happier that he loves his daddy so much...I do too!  I am very glad that he has a twin sister though, or I might be a very sad mama.

Cal is such a happy boy...he's always giggling about something!  And let me just say...his laugh should be bottled up and sold.  It is the MOST terrific join-in-laugh since his Uncle Paul.  When Calvy is laughing...everybody is laughing!  This little boy is sure to be the life of the party.

my funny girl

Charlotte Addison Parker

aka: Charli, Lala, Miss Brown, Snookie, Bug

What's not to love?  My beautiful little girly girl, all giggles and smiles and long golden hair.  I cannot believe how fast she is growing, but every moment I love her more.  She is everything a mother could ask for in a perfect little body.  Her round tummy and soft little legs with a sweet little voice to melt your heart.  In the short minutes of each day she makes everything brighter with a spunkiness that tickles my heart.

The other day we were at the funeral of our good friend Koby's mom, Barb, and after a gentleman sang a very nice song Miss Charlotte stood up on my lap and shouted "YAY!!!" all the while giving him a one person standing ovation.  It is in moments like these that my heart gets a little lighter, and I thank God that she is in my life.

There are so many small things she does each day that are hard to describe in print, but what is certain is that anyone who gets the opportunity to meet this one-of-a-kind girl will definitely be laughing.

There are many silly faces our little Charli uses, and these are some of my favorites.

Already she knows the Freeman/Engle eyebrow trick and can and will use it on demand.  I always think how Paul would have laughed to see her do it.

Of course Lala loves to put on sparkly shoes and have pretty hair, but she is always a little unpredictable...why didn't I think of a SCUBA mask to finish her Christmas outfit???

And of course we cannot forget our little counter thief.  There is not a single item that Charlotte cannot "steal" from the kitchen counter, although bread is her favorite.  Not only did she find this loaf of bread, but she has been found with a pan of rice krispies, a 4 lb container of strawberries, and my personal favorite a bag of potato chips with her partners in crime Cal and Cash literally surrounding her as she doled out her treasure!

Getting the hang of this!

Today was fairly uneventful...full of cleaning, laundry, and vacuum repair...a day in the life!  Our funny little twins have decided after 2 years that they might actually like to switch cribs...goofy.  So, for the last few nights Cal has slept with pink bedding and Charli with blue.  I think the only one who has noticed is me :)

Here's what we've been up to:
poopy underwear: 1 (Calvin) - he just doesn't really care about having a dirty bottom...
nice dry underwear: 1 (Charlotte) - she seems to have mastered "holding" it until nap time...hmmm
glitter shoes: 2 (Cal seems to prefer the silver pair) :)
re-organized pj drawers: 1 (which is the only one)
loads of laundry: 4
lawn tractor rides: 2 (Daddy is the BEST)
cars parked behind our house: soon to be only 2!!!
tubes of diaper cream: 1 mostly spread through Calvin's hair

flash back

there are no words

To the ZOO!

The Parker clan recently made our first trek to the wonderful Omaha Zoo this year (first of many)!  Some of our favorites:

The Aquarium is of course at the top of our list!

Penguins

Favorite "Orange Fish"

NEMO!!

the wonder of children

penguin bubble