Birthday party at Kidzplay

Birthdays are a big deal and we wanted to include the kids of Amy's co-workers and yet not mortgage the house... so we went to Kidzplay for Caleb and Joel's birthday party. They had a blast and got tired out from all the activity. We were really impressed with how smoothly the two hours went.
Enjoy the pictures... (oh yea cousins, Calli Jo, Tori and Justin were there too!)
Check out the cake too... Quite original... it's supposed to be Caleb and Joel in a ball pit after sliding down. We got a lot of comments about the cake!
Joel was 2 on October 6th and Caleb will be 5 on December 23rd. The November party is pretty close to being in the middle of their birthdays. It was also a chance for Caleb to have a somewhat "normal" birthday since his is so close to Christmas. They were very thankful for everything they got... including a TON of clothes. (well, they like the clothes and LOVED the toys... as a parent we were THRILLED with the clothes, especially the PJ's... Caleb came down in the middle of the night and said, "Daddy my toes hurt." His footsie Pj's were more than a bit tight on his toes and he had a light 'brush burn' on his big toes, which I fixed with triple antibiotic and band aids... oh, and PJ's without feet.)

Vacation Pictues!

Here are a few pictures from our trip. We are still talking about it!
We were there with my Dad and his wife Donna from Iowa... so you'll see a picture of the boys with them here too. They had a great time also. We definitely picked the right time of year to go down there... good food, open beaches and wonderful weather! Enjoy!

We hit the ground running...

We made it safely back from our trip to Myrtle Beach (actually it was Surfside Beach). The place was wonderful and the weather was pretty nice too! I'll post some pictures in a couple days as I've been running since I got back.... In between servicing my stores today we got a chance to meet with Tim and Amy Newman, who helped hook us up with our Condo (they allowed us to use their week. A big "Thank you" again to them. It's great to have such good friends.

One quick funny from our trip... Caleb and Joel kept calling Grandma Donna Thoms, Grandma Bundy... They must have thought that our most generous Grandma Bundy (my mom), who sends books, DVD's and such... it had to be her because she came with a bag of toys and a Veggie Tale movie for them to watch.

The boys became pretty attached. Joel and Caleb frequented "Pappa and Grandma's" room and both warmed up to them, so much so, that after they left to return to Iowa, Joel thought he saw "pappa" while shopping and called out to him (a perfect stranger). It was cute. Caleb even was crying because he missed them too.

I said a quick story... Guess I better stop for now. Check back in a few days and I should have a few pictures.

Lonnie

Lake Ontario

We took advantage of some, warmer than what were were experiencing, weather and went to Wilson Tuscarora State Park to take in Lake Ontario. Enjoy the picture.

"Power!"

We're at that fun stage of development with Joel. He loves to sing. Sunday I heard him singing one of our songs from Sunday service... "oh no you never let go, through the calm and through the storm..." As a dad I just have to smile. The latest song he keeps requesting (Caleb too!) is "Power! Daddy. Power!" Selah is a group that reworked the classic hymn, "There is Power in the Blood". We put that CD on in the Kia Sorento and both boys are yelling "POWER! POWER!". (they keep asking for it in the Ford Focus, but I don't have a CD player in it) I put the CD on our iPod that we won (another story in itself) and plugged the iPod into my speakers in the kitchen. Suddenly the kitchen was 'God's Groove Central'... both boys were running and dancing, and singing. For the record they also like "Esango", also on the CD 'Hiding Place'.
All of this reminded me of Psalm 8:2 (New Century Version) With praises from children and from tiny infants, you have built a fortress. It makes your enemies silent, and all who turn against you are left speechless.
The more familiar version of NIV says,"From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise..."

And right now I'm getting an ear and eye full... (grin!)

Boat Ride!

Caleb kept telling me that he wanted to go on a boat every time we went to the "Worship on the Water". He didn't understand that if there wasn't someone in the boat that you couldn't just walk up and go for a ride. Thankfully Wally Freck, who hosts the "Worship on the Water" with his wife, had a boat. We just had to coordinate schedules and well... we got to go last week on Wednesday! We spent 2 hours out on the water and the boys just loved it. Caleb was a bit scared at first but really began to enjoy it. Wally even let me behind the wheel to drive it. The only casualty was Joel's Pooh hat (see picture). We were moving along at a good clip and approaching the Grand Island Bridge (Buffalo /Tonawanda side) and the wind was picking up and... whoosh! there went the hat! The boys thanked Wally for such a great time.

Take me to the river...

Sunday after speaking at the Worship on the Water in Tonawanda at Long's Homestead, Caleb, Joel and I grabbed some breakfast and went to a park by the river. We had a great time walking and seeing the sights. They loved the boats, RC airplane, and the cute dog... the dog walked with a 'hop' in its step. The owner said the front right leg was broken when it was a pup and after it healed the dog just walked like that. It reminded me of Joel's skip / run. Very cute. Unfortunately the fun turned to bummer as Caleb caught the virus Joel had... Both are well now, but it was pretty uncomfortable for both boys for a couple days. As you can see below, it's time to go... Joel's waving 'bye, bye!"