slip and slide

it's October and we're still breaking out the swim suits.
I found this beaut at wal-mart for $3.
The boys were wild with excitement. We set it up, turned on the hose and… they stood and looked at it. They had no idea what to do!
Talmage asked me, ‘do it first, mom’. Yeah, right!
Instead, I recruited all my interpretive dance moves and showed them what to do. (Good thing it was in the backyard…that would’ve been quite a show).
Sorry, I forgot to change the view before I uploaded this.

Logan Speaks

We never swim

So it seems like all the pictures we post are with the boys in swim suits. That would be because we wear them every day for several hours and some days for most hours of the day. Can you blame us? It's the HOTTEST summer on record. (I'm not joking, the hottest June and August on record and the 3rd hottest July on record.) I'm just grateful that we can be sunscreen-spraying, floating-wearing, otter pop-eating, ninja-diving, fun-loving people. How could we handle it otherwise?

Logan loves to chill-ax

both boys rock the floaties

Reid gives us a big open-mouth smile. (he doesn't enjoy the swimming scene as much, he is mostly inside taking a nap while we're working on our ninja-dives.)

How we spend our days

three boys
lots of energy
lots of activity
lots of trouble

we see alligators.
too scary for baby Reid.

we chill
we work on our tans

we try to beat the heat.

We had a baby!

We had a baby! Reid James Bodine on June 21.
He weighed 7 lb 13 oz and was 19 inches long.
Right after birth he was bright eyed.
Some pictures I took today, on his 1 week birthday. Holy cow, it went fast.
Logan really loves his 'new baby'. He's a little too hands on. For that reason, we haven't let him hold Reid (we don't want him to think he really can hold the baby).

Another after birth shot, he came out so pink!

Riding the Bike

So a couple of weeks ago, we took the scooter bike and put Talmage on a pedal bike. He loved it. This was taken a couple of days later. Since then, he's started wearing a helmet, he's kind of a hazard to himself and others.

Easter Vests

Remember last years Easter Vests? Well, this year I had fabric but no pattern (it's packed away somewhere). Logan's vest was too tight (like last year) and Talmage's was a little too big. But I did get around to making bow-ties, and they were very cute. I wish I had a better picture of them (the boys).

No Easter is complete without a little Easter egg hunt. Truston did a good job of hiding the eggs really well and the boys were thrilled to discover candy inside.

Why we don't buy toys.

Summer is almost here, and I think we had just gotten out of the pool..so excuse the lack of clothing.
Sometimes I see toys that are so cool, and I want to buy them, mostly because I want to play with them. But then I remember how much fun Talmage and Logan have with boxes, bags, etc. and I don't see the need.
Here's to the simple life!

Spring Break

Actually, Truston doesn't really get Spring Break, it was just a week off between terms, and it happened to be the week before every body else's spring break. But we wanted to have FUN FUN FUN in the SUN, so we stay-cationed around town with Truston. Can't complain about this weather! This is a picture of the medical center from Herman Park (across the street).


He did have to go into school one day, so we dropped him off and went to the zoo. This baby giraffe was born the week before we visited, 6 feet at birth! He was so cute. Logan, especially, loved the animals.

We went to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo one day. It was awesome. I love the rodeo. I had never been with kids before, and I was pleasantly surprised by how much stuff they had for kids to do. We watched some mutton bustin', saw a lot of cows, sheep, pigs, chicks, etc. The baby animals were especially cute. Logan loved the petting zoo, he ran from animal to animal petting them.

There was a 'Farmer Joe' exhibit to show kids where food comes from and how it gets to our stores, complete with a tractor. That was a big thrill for Talmage.
For Christmas this year, I bought some tickets for Truston to go to the NCAA indoor track and field championships at A&M. We went on Friday and Saturday night to watch the races. It was AWESOME! It is so amazing to watch such talented athletes at the height of their skills. We totally enjoyed the meet. This isn't a very good picture, but this is Jeff Demps (the running back for Florida State) being interviewed by an ESPN reporter after he WON the 60M. This guy is HUGE and he is FAST. (you didn't know that i liked track and field? huh, neither did i)
I took this picture because I didn't think it would last very long...sure enough BYU was beat out by A&M and Florida State. But we were proud to cheer for BYU, all the athletes they brought were awesome and the men ended up placing 3rd.
And a little photograph of Truston and I in the bleachers.
YAY for spring break! It was nice to enjoy some time together as a family doing so much fun stuff.

Riding Bikes

So, remember this bike?
We got it for Talmage at a garage sale this sale this fall and he loved it. For about 2 days. Something about the construction of the bike made it impossible to fit training wheels. And he didn't want to ride it with only one training wheel. go figure.
So we decided to try a 'skut' bike. Only they cost about $100 dollars. Luckily, Wal-mart has a knock off (I love that place) for only $30 dollars. We got it last week and Talmage LOVES his new 'scooter bike'. He was pretty wobbly at first and would NOT let go of the hand-brake. But, after a week, he's catching on and getting pretty good. In this video he is kind of wobbly because he was showing us a 'trick'. He also thinks he can do 'wheelies' and 'jump' sewer lids. Anyways, we're glad he has some bigger wheels. He's been looking pretty ridiculous on his tricycle for some time now.
So,

Down the Hill

Maybe the greatest altitude change in the whole city of Katy.

Logan on the fire truck

When ever we go outside to ride bikes, Logan grabs our little fire truck. Although he loves it, he's not very fast. In fact, he almost goes the same distance forward and backward.

Dancing

Here is Thomas playing some tunes for the boys. He cannot play and they cannot dance, so it was all fun and games. (until it got too wild and somebody ran into a chair and got a bloody nose)

More Cheese than Chips

Like Father, like son. This is Logan eating spicy queso dip.
Doesn't stop him.

tomato soup

These boys LOVE tomato soup. It is probably one of our favorite lunches. The last time I gave them some tomato soup, Logan started lapping it up like a dog. I love that he has a big, content "AHH" after he's done.

Of course, it's not until the END that he finally notices his shirt is saturated with tomato soup. Good thing it's a red shirt.

mania

have you joined jimmer-mania? cause we have. we're buying tickets to the final 4 (holla! They're in h-town) and praying that BYU can make it.

read this:

http://www.jimmerpoy.com/2011/02/08/do-not-mess-with-the-jimmer/

Potty Trained!

So...in my last post I mentioned that we were going to start potty training Talmage. We've been encouraging him to go to the bathroom for a while, but he stubbornly resisted. Finally, out of desperation and disgust for changing diapers, we went to the store and bought some underwear. He cried when I took off his diaper, "No! Not my diaper." ha, huge giveaway he had been playing us all along. Right off the bat, he's been almost 100% in the #1 category. It took a couple of days for #2 to make it into the toilet, but with some major encouragement and an ice cream cake (that my fabulous mom bought) we've been perfect for almost a week. Thank you Talmage. and Thank you Grandma for all the cheering and hullabaloo...Talmage loves it.

This foray into body excrements has really jolted my cleaning radar. If anything, I'm much more motivated to clean the bathroom (my least favorite chore). It also has me wondering if we should just potty train Logan right now. He was very interested in Talmage's potty training experience and has been trying to change his own diaper for months now. Anyways, I'm writing this down to tell you a funny story....

When Talmage has gone "big poo poo in the big potty" we call Truston and cheer and congratulate over the phone, etc. So earlier this week, we called Truston and he didn't answer. About an hour later, my phone rang and Talmage grabbed it and shouted into the phone, "DAD! I WENT BIG POO POO IN THE BIG POTTY!!!" I was laughing in the background, thinking it was probably funny for Truston when I heard Talmage say, "huh? ahhhh" and then he handed me the phone. Much to our surprise it was somebody returning a phone call from the doctor's office. I still thought it was funny, and I couldn't help thinking that it had probably made her day. I mean, if an unsuspecting toddler had shared such exciting news with you...wouldn't it make your day?

Update

hey folks, obviously blogging is not my forte, or on the front page of my to-do list. But I thought I should update, since my siblings feel neglected if I don't keep them updated. So here are some random updates of our life recently...or not so recently
Thanksgiving, the annual Turkey Bowl. Young Men vs. Old men
Both Truston and Robert were looking forward to this showdown. Actually all the men in the house went, even my cousins and uncle who were here visiting. Thankfully, Thanksgiving was pretty warm, so we spent the day outside, occasionally going inside to cook something for our dinner. (It was the laziest Thanksgiving ever). The boys came home after a couple of hours we got the following story:
Robert was the YM quarterback. Truston rushed him.
After he released the ball, his finger headed straight for Truston's eye.
Good poke in the eye. His under eye oozed blood for a couple of hours and then it turned into a black eye. Thanksgiving casualty.
On to the other boys in my life:
Logan is as happy and fun as ever. He is a joking, teasing goofball. He thinks he's really funny and is constantly playing little jokes on us. Which sounds funny because he doesn't talk, but he communicates plenty. He loves following Talmage around, hugging his blanket, and playing with cars and trucks. He mostly loves to eat and my dad. He waits for my dad to get home every night and then follows him around like a puppy. Even if we've eaten dinner, he still wants to just sit on my dad's lap and watch him eat. He still loves to eat and can put away an impressive quantity of food. He likes to hang out around the pantry (sometimes hiding inside and popping out to scare us).

Talmage is still a happy, easy going guy. We love watching his little personality grow (sometimes into a little 'tude). He's moved up to Sunbeams and loves being a big-kid in Primary. He likes to help me cook, watching closely and stirring anything that needs to be stirred. Sometimes in the morning he will make Logan, me and himself some toast for our daily walk. He still LOVES cars (the movie and toys) and is 100% interested in anything with a motor and wheels. At the beginning of December we went to Dickens on the Stand (a Dickens festival down in Galveston). We loved all the costumes and performing groups, but we were especially tickled by the camel and elephant rides. Talmage and I rode a camel together...it was awesome...and stinky.
Some funny things I've heard lately:
-hold you me. hold you me. (which is Talmage's still incorrect way of saying, hold me). and I said, 'no, way, I'm already holding Logan.' (and trying to cook dinner, of course) and Talmage says, 'hold you me. you have room.' 'where?' i ask, 'there' as he points at my other shoulder. haha, of course i could carry a 25 lb. 1 year old, 30 lb. 3 year old and cook dinner at the same time.
-'I'll just wait for it to get in my diaper.' which is his standard answer if we ask him to go to the bathroom. He is resisting potty training (even though he can do it) like it'll kill him. Actually, just today I bought him some underwear and he has gone by himself all day...we'll see how long this lasts.