Foote Family

Birthdays and Christmas

2009-01-13T11:55:00.000-08:00

Well, December has come and gone. We successfully celebrated two birthdays, the Christmas season, and New Year's eve. Whew....this is a busy month! December started with my birthday. We had a terrific shrimp pasta dinner at our house with my folks. It was a fun evening hanging out and enjoying good food!

Christmas we stayed here in OH. Josh is involved in the Christmas Eve service, so my folks came over here for an early supper, we all went to church, and then headed to my parents'. As a kid, we always opened gifts on Christmas Eve, and I really like that tradition. However, by the time we're done with church, etc., the night is pretty late for our little guys. So, we let them open a few gifts, and then put them to bed. Last year we did that and it worked great. This year, however, Ayden was much more aware of everything and VERY excited. So, when he re-appeared from his bed unable to sleep, we finished opening his gifts, played around for a while, and then concluded the night. Kieran enjoyed opening presents Christmas morning and Ayden had one saved for then also. We spent several days hanging out at my folks and that was very nice. Here are a few pics of the boys enjoying their new toys.

Kieran's birthday was a fun day. As I've mentioned before, he LOVES to eat, so we decided to head out to Cici's a local family pizza buffet. It's a great place for families with young kids. They have a nice arcade room that Ayden enjoyed and loads of unending food, and that was right up Kieran's alley. We opened gifts there with my parents and Carrie. I think Kieran really enjoyed it.

Here Kieran is with his birthday "cake," which is really a compilation of the desserts from the buffet: cinnamon rolls, brownies, and dessert pizza! Of course, we did a candle:)

Kieran opening his gifts with help from big brother Ayden.

The boys continue to bring us tremendous joy. Kieran is walking all over the place and loves being able to carry things from one spot to another. Ayden is enjoying the fact that Kieran is able to "play" with him more and they like to drive cars and trucks throughout the house. Their favorite activity is still wrestling on our bed. They both love throwing themselves all over the place, but you have to keep an eye on Kieran because he tends to launch himself off the side of the bed.

Josh and I are enjoying the breather between Christmas and Easter. It's nice that his schedule has slowed down a bit now, but we know it will pick up again soon! We've begun rearranging our house. We'll be moving our bedroom upstairs, opening up our room for a playroom and baby room. Yup, a little before Christmas we were delightedly surprised to discover that we're having another baby!!! I'm due the end of August, and we'll be sure to keep you posted:) We're truly thrilled and looking forward to meeting this little person!!

Well, that's our news for now. Happy New Year, all!!!

Foote Family Thanksgiving

2008-12-07T19:43:00.000-08:00

I've had these pictured uploaded for a long time but haven't gotten around to writing the narrative to go with them. So, although nearly a month later, here's our Thanksgiving story. We made the drive out to NE this year and got together with Josh's family. I was a bit worried about the drive because our goal was to make the 14 hour drive in one day. We did it. The way to NE took about 19 hours because we stopped at a Chuck E Cheese for some out-of-the-car fun. Our trip home was about about 21 hours. I think the boys had a harder time sitting that time and Kieran got sick twice. Fortunately, the first was in the car and the second at the rest stop where we were cleaning up the car. He was a happy camper through the whole thing, so we don't think he was really sick. Maybe just car sick?? Who knows.

The time in NE was nice. We had a great time with all 10 other cousins and got a few fun photos as a result. Here's one of our only a family-of-four photos. As well as a picture that quite accurately represents the chaos that comes from 21 one people being together for a meal:)

Ayden and Kieran are enjoying playing together more every day. Kieran has learned to push trucks and so often joins in when Ayden is playing. Here they are in an inflatable tent we have.

Kieran is what my dad likes to call the "consummate consumer." He LOVES to eat and does it with great gusto, often out eating Ayden. He'll eat anything from shrimp and crab cakes to pretzels and carrots. Loves it all and it's fun to see him shovel it in:)

Ayden is developping quite the immagination and often transforms our car into a motorcycle, dump truck, or helicopter. Here he is in a motorcycle, I believe, along with his motorcyle helmet, aka construction hat. It is on backwards; the part over his mouth is supposed to be the size adjuster that goes in back. However, Ayden knows that all helmets have visors and this was the best he could come up with in creating one for himself. He'll often wear this the black strap is over his eyes. He can't see, but he also won't turn the hat around because it's his motorcycle helmet! If we're not driving some exotic vehicle, we're turning into Bob the Builder characters. Throughout the day Ayden assigns us new personalities, whether they be Scoop, Bob, Wendy, Dizzy, and occasionally we through Winnie the Pooh characters into the mix! Quite fun!

Halloween Fun

2008-11-01T12:23:00.000-07:00

This year Ayden was to be a fireman for Halloween. We had borrowed a fireman's coat and hat to be worn with our fireman hose and boots. Ayden was very excited about Halloween, especially the trick-or-treating, because, unlike last year, he understood what would be happening. He eagerly anticipated his candy stash. Like last year, however, he opted out of the costume . The fireman outfit, although something he was very interested in, ended up draped across a chair or left in the car during our various parties.

We had a Halloween party at a friend's house. Here are the kids painting their pumpkins. Everyone came in costumes (or, as in Ayden's case, with costumes in hand), but by this point they had been shed.

Ayden also had a Halloween party at his Gymboree class. Here he is enjoying his pumpkin cookie. Notice the red behind him--that's his costume!

Here's Ayden playing on the equipment as his party. He loves jumping, and it's fun to see how his jumping has really developed. When we first started these classes, he would more step off the platform rather than jump. Now, however, he's much more airborn as he flies off.

A high point of Gymboree classes is the closing song. It's the same song every class with a dance "routine." The kids get to pick dancing partners (aka stuffed animals). Here Ayden is at the end of his party with his favorite partners--the two cows. He rushes to pick them every time and watch out kids if you're in his way!

Needless to say, Kieran wasn't as active in the Halloween scene. He wore a celebratory pumpkin shirt, but, other than, he was a rapt observer. Here's a picture of him at a local library's Discovery Zone. It's a great kids' area with lots of fun activity centers. Kieran here is enjoying the lego table.

Ayden continues to strive for potty training proficiency. He does well with the potty part. The other, well, not so much. So, this last week we've spent hours (yes, hours) reading, watching shows on the laptop, talking, etc. He's made progress and is now the proud owner of two new Bob the Builder toys: Dizzy and Roley. These round out his already begun collection. In the days to come he hopes to also have Muck as well as a spider man watch.

Happy Birthday, Ayden!

2008-10-05T15:31:00.000-07:00

Friday was Ayden's 3rd birthday, and we had a great time spending the weekend celebrating. What a joy he is!! Friday we woke up to cupcakes and presents. I think Ayden thought that was the end of his big day, because, when wished a Happy Birthday at 9:00 am, he declared, "It's not my birthday anymore." We tried telling him throughout the day that it still was, but it wasn't until late afternoon, maybe when having pizza with Grandma and Grandpa (another present was involved) that he ascribed to the "birthday all day" theory:)

Saturday was the party, and it was fun. We had beautiful weather, so we were able to have it outside. Nearly all of Ayden's very dear friends could make it, and they enjoyed croquet, bowling, and a guitar pinata. Our theme was "Things Ayden likes," so we had a fire truck cake (joint effort by Josh and me) as well as a dump truck cake with "dirt" brownies/pudding and gummy worms, a guitar pinata, sesame street plates/napkins, and ball-themed invitations. Ayden had a blast and was a wonderful host. By the end of the night he was happily exhausted.

So, now we enter the wonderful world of a three-year-old. One event, yet to experience but much anticipated, is enjoying the Eagle's Nest at our groccery store, Giant Eagle. Giant Eagle offers free childcare in a very appealing playroom equipped with toys, video games, etc. Unfortunately, you must be three to enjoy it. So, Ayden has been very excited to go to the groccery store's "playground." Also, now that he's three, he gets to change classes at our Gymboree play and music program. His new class is called school skills, a pre-pre-school of sorts. It's a drop-off class, and I think he'll enjoy learning letters and other skills in a more structured setting.

Kieran is out-right crawling now, having fully rejected the army crawl. He's a happy camper, except when he's supposed to be sleeping, like right now. If I thought it might jar some ideas in terms of getting us through the night or a nap, I would literally bang my head against a wall. However, knowing that won't be helpful, I'll settle for the metaphorical "I'm banging my head against the wall" in frustration. He loves to be a part of things, and, unfortunately, bed time does involve a degree of separation. That aside, the little guy is developing quite the personality, and we love the big smile that's (usually!) on his face.

Enjoy the birthday pics!

Brothers

2008-09-03T19:24:00.000-07:00

We've entered a wonderful new phase in our family. Kieran has reached a new level of mobility, expressiveness, and interest in interacting with people. It's been particularly fun to see him adore Ayden, and Ayden, likewise, adore him. Kieran loves his folks, to be sure, but when he sees Ayden, his eyes light up and he looks at him with wonderful expectation, "What glorious plans do you have for us now?" Earlier this afternoon, they were both in the living room "driving" cars on some of Ayden's tracks. It was glorious to hear Kieran squeeling with delight and Ayden respond in laughter.

Ayden, likewise, adores his little brother. He makes sure Kieran gets his share of graham crackers, that his Gymbo teacher blows bubbles in Kieran's direction, and that Kieran is properly smothered with hugs.

They both LOVE to wrestle. Our bed is the most popular spot, and when I get home after Josh and the boys have been home alone, our bed is always mussed and the pillows askew due to the throwing of bodies and wrestling. Ayden regularly requests that Josh give him a ride on his back and then run through the house. He also likes to be thrown on the bed. When Kieran sees them on the bed, he bursts into a huge grin, lunges from my arms, and joins in the fight. It's really fun.

Friends and Fun

2008-08-02T13:22:00.000-07:00

Ayden has a video that centers on firemen and all their job entails. He loves it and spends time fighting fires around our house. Here he is in his fireman helmet, boots, and "pants" (he pulled them up like they do on the video, so even though they're shorts--they're fireman pants).

Josh's mom recently made a short visit, and we had a nice time spending the day with her. She was able to come see Ayden's Gymbo class, which, as you may remember from earlier posts, is a big event in our family. Barb brought with her shirts for Ayden and Kieran, so here they are sporting their matching race car shirts. Ayden likes it when he and Kieran are dressed at least similarly, so this was fun for him.

We do a good bit of groccery shopping at Giant Eagle. Ayden loves this store because they have a kid cookie club. So, every time we go, he gets a cookie. Hence, he calls it the cookie store. Another exciting facet of this store is their carts. Their car carts are in high demand, so, when we go, we scope out the outside cart corrals and then head in to see if we can find one. Sometimes we get one, sometimes we don't. Here's a picture of the first time Kieran joined Ayden in the cart. Kieran, as you can tell, took to it immediately.

This past week we had a number of fun outings with friends. Here's a picture of Ayden and Kieran with Brooklyn. They're taking a break from running around the water spraygrounds. It was a fun break from the very hot weather we've had lately. We went last year, too. It was something to see how Ayden's changed since then. Last year he cautiously enjoyed running through the various sprinklers. This year, he plowed through them all without thinking twice about it.

We also went to the Lake Erie Nature and Science Center with Bella, her mom, and brother Silas. Ohio has a terrific metropark system with beautiful trails, nature centers, and activities for families. At this particular center, we saw a lot of animals found in Ohio's wild. It was fun and we ended the trip with a picnic at Huntington Beach.

Month in pictures

2008-07-14T10:20:00.001-07:00

So, my posts got published out of order. The written narrative is below, but here's a pictorial overview of our activities this past month. We've had some fun adventures and enjoy seeing the boys have fun!!

Vacations, Trips, and More

2008-07-14T09:58:00.000-07:00

I clearly remember the day of our last post, for it was a hard day and a turning point in our family's life. To refresh, Ayden was having trouble (to put it mildly) adjusting to wearing underwear. We have now moved on and have a (nearly) completely potty-trained little boy. We continue to have a few kinks to work through but Ayden is doing very well and we're all breathing a huge sigh of relief.

In June, Josh took a week off and we explored more aspects of Ohio. We went to a farm and Ayden got his first pony ride. Since Josh had a Sunday off, we went to another Friends church in Willoughby Hills and then disc-golfed in the afternoon. Josh LOVES disc golfing, but this experience affirmed that he loves his family even more. There are no courses closer than forty-five minutes away from us, so this was something Josh was really looking forward to. Ayden, also, looked forward to golfing with daddy, which slowed the game's pace considerably, but made it a very sweet father-son activity. At one point, Josh's disc ended in the brush, and Ayden, thinking that's where they were supposed to go, threw his deep into the brush. When Josh went to get a stick to help pull it out, Ayden then found a stick and adopted that as a permanent part of the game!

Ayden disc golfing for the first time.

The following week Josh and Carrie headed off to IL and WI to visit a few churches in the area. The trip's purpose was to observe other worship arts teams, watch them conduct rehearsals, plan services, etc. Carrie went since she's considering a career in the Worship Arts field, and Josh went to "job shadow" at churches that represent "the next step." Ayden, Kieran and I stayed with my folks during that time, which was a wonderful. We swam in the backyard, went to Cleveland's West Side Market, and enjoyed much time with the grandparents.

Fourth of July was a fun day. We headed off to a parade with my family, Carrie's boyfriend Abe, and some friends from church. After a cookout that afternoon, we went to Liberty fest where Ayden got to ride on a number of rides, including bumper cars with Josh.

Life's holidays and vacations are now done for a while, except for a two day trip Josh has next week for a pastors' conference. Our house is needing some rearranging now as Kieran is mobile. We have some time as he's scooting and it's still laborious, but he's becoming more adept all the time. He's loving solids and has gobbled avocado like a mad-man and also enjoys sweet potatos, beans, applesauce, and bananas. I've recently acquired a Palm Centro phone and am just loving it. Smart phones are definitely wonderful things and I love having organization, communication, and fun wrapped up in one little device. Very cool:)

The next milestone

2008-06-12T07:37:00.000-07:00

In the last few weeks, we have fully embraced potty training. This has been no small feat, however, for, along the way we have learned several new things about Ayden. (Or, perhaps more accurately, several things have been confirmed.) After spending hours in the bathroom over the course of a Saturday and Sunday, Ayden went full throttle on the whole "going in the potty thing." His diapers were consistently dry, not only during the day but after virtually every nap and every morning. Awesome!!! I had always suspected that once he got the mechanics, he would do very well. So, assuming Ayden would be ready to get out of diapers (aren't all kids dying to get out of them? Everything I read said offer underwear and "big boy" pull-ups as incentives, right?), we suggested he move out of diapers. Not so our Ayden!! "I don't want to wear pull-ups, I don't want to wear underwear" he has chanted to me on a number of occaisions. And, yes, I did the whole let's-go-to-Target- and-pick-out-whatever-underwear-you-want routine. We have spider man, the incredible hulk (or giant hulk, as Ayden calls him), Cars, Elmo... We've got them all. At first, I thought he was emotionally attached to diapers, because Ayden doesn't like change. I think that was a bit of it. But, I've also learned that Ayden is afraid to "fail." Let me assure you, we have not scolded or done anything psychologically damaging in the whole arena of accidents. But, for example, we were headed to the mall yesterday, and he was literally in tears because he was afraid of "potty coming out." Another time, I went to sit him on the counter so I could put his shoes on and he didn't want to sit there in case "potty come out." One afternoon, he was all set to play outside in his new sandbox, but he was so worried about "potty coming out" (are you noticing a recurring phrase), that he sat on his potty chair instead. Slowly, he's logging success and staying dry, but he's still worried about it all. We're using this as an opportunity to teach him that set backs are okay and he does have some measure of control in this situation. Poor guy....poor mother:) It's exhausting for both of us. We could keep diapers for a while, but my gut says that we'd only prolong this same situation. So, knowing that, we're gently (!) trying to move him forward. Kieran is a ready and willing support groupie as he often keeps him company in the bathroom.

Ayden is still an avid mower, and if Josh or one or our neighbors is mowing, he gets out his mower, puts on his hat and mowing shoes (yes, he has special shoes) and joins them.

In the Kieran world, he's chowing down on cereal and anxious to begin more solids. His sleeping has improved at night, but he's begun protesting naps lately. He's a social guy and hates to be left out of anything. He never lays still but is always rolling, getting stuck, rolling the other way, getting stuck, rolling again, stuck on an arm...you get the picture. The other night I tried the whole "stand by him but don't touch him trick" to help him get to sleeep. I got exhausted just watching him move. Some of the things he does I've seen on ab workouts!!

Yes, our family is moving through new stages now and while it thrills me, it also exhausts me. We're good, though, as the weather brings new fun: our pool, sandbox, and puddles!

May at a glimpse

2008-05-28T12:27:00.001-07:00

This past month has held much for the Foote household. I have a slide show that covers it in pics and I'll give a few of the highlights here. In early May, NASA, about ten minutes from our house, had an open house. So, we loaded up the kids and went. We parked at the I-X center and rode a bus to the NASA grounds, a highlight in Ayden's book. There was a wealth of exhibits and hands-on things to see and explore. Ayden got to sit in a cockpit, which he loved as it included many buttons he could push and explore. We saw the gravity testing station, the wind tunnels, the sound absorbtion station, and much more.

The sound absorbtion building (clearly not it's technical name, but that escapes me for the moment), holds a special place in our hearts. While in this very quiet "building"/station, due to all the sound absorbing blocks, Ayden announces, "I'm poopy!" and begins walking rather awkwardly and bowleggedly. I look at him and wonder, is a puddle forming? He takes a few steps and a few drops follow him. Yes, we had neglected our child enough that his diaper was beyond the absorption point. We left our "mark" in that station, went outside and had to change him in the grass. (There were no public restrooms, only porta-potties.) It was a comical/tragic moment in our family's outing.

Along with Mother's Day, this month also held my mom's and dad's birthdays, which happen to be four days apart. Ayden enjoyed the birthday traditions immensly: blowing out the fire, singing, presents, cake, etc. My dad is out of town this week, and so he was gone for my mom's birthday, on Sunday. I offered to drive down and get Carrie at OSU so she could come home for the weekend and celebrate my mom's birthday with us. So, Ayden, Kieran and I left Sat. and picked her up. Sunday, we had the birthday party, which was wonderful. Then, Monday, my mom, Ayden, Kieran, Carrie, and I loaded into our taurus to take Carrie back. It was a fun trip, filled with many "challenges." On the way there, we stopped at, what I like to call, the most dysfunctional McDonalds ever. We tried one of their new hand-dipped ice cream cones, handed to me with chocolate dripping all over and down the cone. The brusque man who dipped it for me offered a gruff, "sorry" to make me feel better about handing this mess of a cone to my son. Then, Kieran blew threw his diaper, onesie, and onto his car seat, and this was only forty-five minutes into the trip! Although the drive home was also challenging, the day was nice overall. We got to have lunch with some of Carrie's roommates and meet her boyfriend Abe who was a hit with Ayden.

Kieran is make wild progress in the movement department. He rolls from front to back, back to front, lifts his butt inches off the ground, and protests if he's left in a room by himself. He's a social fellow and loves his brother dearly. He follows Ayden with his eyes whenever they're in the same room, and it's fun to see them enjoy each other so much.

Enjoy the rest of the highlights in the slideshow!

Our Boys

2008-05-03T20:21:00.000-07:00

Ayden LOVES mowing the lawn. When Josh (or a neighbor) mows, he glues himself to windows and watches their every move. Lately, he's been using his Scoop toy (from Bob the Builder) and pretending it's a lawn mower. This past week, however, we went to my folks just as my dad was doing some mowing. Ayden was thrilled and went out to watch. He even got to help push the mower. Well, Ayden wanted to mow himself, so he went in, got his Thomas the Train suitcase, took it out, and pretended that was a mower. He followed in my dad's tracks and mowed the yard. Well, that was hint enough for us, and we went out and bought him a toy lawn mower. He loves it and now also dons headphones since he saw our neighbor wearing some protective ear wear while doing some heavy duty yard work.

On the Kieran front, we made huge progress today. I had to work this evening, and, typically, that means a difficult haul for Josh. While he gladly stays with the boys, Kieran poses a huge challenge because he is extremely anti-bottle. Well, today, Kieran took his bottle!! Hooray!

Kieran is starting to exhibit quite the personality. He rolls over in a hearbeat, gets very upset when he's sick of being on his stomach, does not sleep well from 12 (am!)-6, loves to be given a blanket for comfort, loves sticking his tongue out, drools a ton (like his brother did), and really loves his big brother. Here's a video example of typical Ayden/Kieran interaction.

During this clip, Ayden is singing over and over "I'm banging the drums."

No children fell off the couch during this video clip. It did end happily for all :)

Gatlinburg

2008-04-18T18:02:00.000-07:00

We’ve spent this past week in Gatlinburg, TN at a pastors' conference. It was a terrific time away, and there was plenty of time for sight-seeing and enjoying the mountain scenery.

Our trip started Sunday evening around 8 pm. We headed out with the intention of having two happily sleeping children from Cleveland to Cincinnati. Not so. Kieran slept, but Ayden only did part of the time. Around 11 pm we drove past OSU where Carrie is going to school. So, on an impulse, and since Ayden was awake, we stopped to see her and have bubble tea, a popular Asian beverage. It was a terrifically fun memory, and it put us at our Cincinnati hotel around 2 that morning!

Gatlinburg held many wonderful adventures. One morning we went mini golfing on a black lit course. This was Ayden’s first time mini golfing and he enjoyed it. Typically, he would simply carry the ball up to the hole, place it down, and hit it in. A very expeditious way to play, if you ask me. We also rode the trolley, enjoyed a breathtaking scenic drive, and tried to experience Gatlinburg’s rib and wing fest. This last activity was not such a success. Rib fest was Thurs. evening, and twelve dollars bought you a ticket, entitling you to all-you- can-eat ribs from the various booths at the festivals. Since Josh loves both ribs and wings, he was quite excited to attend. So, we went to the fest anticipating much good food and fun times. Not to be so! There were far too many people crammed onto one of Gatlinburg’s very narrow streets. The lines were not well-delineated, so it was very hard to tell where lines began and ended. It was also extremely hot since we were crammed so close to all the grills where they were cooking the meat. None of this, though, was the clincher. What clinched us leaving before getting our ribs were the characters walking around. You know, the mascot pig and fireman who wander around to entertain the kids. Well, not ours. Ayden took one look at them, shrieked, burst into tears, and declared that he wanted to go home. We tried to calm him down, but the wary eyes that kept scanning the crowd for these evil creatures, plus all the other negative aspects, made us cut our losses, declare this not a child-friendly event, and sent us to TGI Fridays for a much more pleasant meal!

These pictures document many of the trip's highlights.

Ayden and Josh enjoying the hotel arcade.

Kieran decided to go anti-pack-n-play this trip and only slept in his car seat or with us. Attempts to put him in the pack-n-play were met with loud protests.

Playing in the inflatable fort.

Kieran ready for his first dip in the pool.

Kieran zonked in the stroller.

Enjoying the trolley ride.

View from the scenic drive.

Too many for a title

2008-03-21T11:18:00.001-07:00

Wow! I didn't realize it had been almost a month since I last blogged. So, we'll highlight three-ish things from our lives. In order of oldest to newest, here goes:

Blown out window
About 8 months ago my parents started going to our church. It's great having them here and Ayden enjoys seeing his grandparents at least on Sunday mornings. Well, one Sunday, my dad had to be at all three services, so my mom came over to hang out at our house. As she was coming in the house and beginning to close the door (it had not closed yet), the back window blew out and shattered glass all over. Nice. Broken window beginning of March. So, we frantically cleaned up and cardboarded the back window until it could be fixed later that afternoon. Tools were needed to do a thorough cleaning as glass pieces were left in the door and had to be extracted. Enter our two-year-old Bob the Builder. He was in heaven! My mom wore gloves to protect her hands, and Ayden eagerly donned his own as he "helped" her out.

Snowed-in
A few weeks ago we had a major snowfall, about 18 inches in our area over the span of 48 hours. The snow started on Friday evening and continued through late Saturday night. Because it was so heavy, church was cancelled on Sunday. What luck! This was the same weekend as daylight savings, so Josh and his praise team, who ordinarily have to be at church at 7:15, were thrilled to not have to get up so very early.

We have a long driveway, and unfortunately, do not have a snow blower. Josh usually goes out and shovels tracks for our cars and paths for us. The snow was so heavy, though, that our neighbor, bless him, took pity on us and snow blowed some of our drive for us. Sunday morning we woke up and I looked into our back yard, and Don, a church trustee, was snowblowing a path from the church through our backyard. For those of you who don't know, we rent from the church, and our property, which is an acre and a half, is directly behind the church. Consequently, Josh walks to work through our backyard. 18 inches, however, is a bit much to walk through for work. Don completely surprised us by blowing a path for him.

Easter colds
This week Ayden came down with a killer cold. His eyes have been sunken and red, he had a temp of 101, and he wouldn't eat anything. Naturally, that means we've been housebound for several days! Yuck!! Anyway, Josh and I have been amazed and the way he (Ayden) freely douses us with his germs. We tried to get him to cover his mouth when he coughed, but he just told us, "No, it's fricky" (fricky=tricky). Okay....so we would put our hands up to cover his mouth. Ayden wasn't always into that as he would sometimes lower our hands.. No protection allowed, I guess. Two nights ago it was the worst, and Ayden had an awful time sleeping. Josh and I would take turns going in to lay with Ayden throughout the night. We scrunched into his bed, often having little room to lie since he insisted on laying in the middle despite the fact that two people were now in the bed. When he'd have to cough, he'd turn towards us hack all over us and then settle back in. Seriously, we feel awaful for the poor guy but find some grotesque humor in how freely he shares his germs.

Josh is hoping he doesn't get the cold as this is a big weekend for those in the Worship Arts field. Yesterday we had our Maundy Thurs. service. For those unfamiliar with Maundy Thurs., as we were until coming here, it's a celebration of the last supper. Josh was in charge of the service and did a beautiful job. He introduced several new things, including a footwashing ceremony as part of the service. It was beautiful. Well, that's us in a nut shell. Happy Easter to all!

Museums, Singing, and Bottles

2008-02-29T10:01:00.000-08:00

We recently went to Cleveland's Children's Museum. It was great fun, and Ayden had a blast. They have a water room where kids can learn about levees and dams by building them and rearranging pipes. In order to let the kids play in the water, they provide rain coats for them to wear.

Another popular room was the sand room. Here they recreate an island on which research and excavation is being done. There's a ship to climb on, a research tent to go in, and lots of sand, shovels, and even a jeep to ride around in. Josh and Ayden had a terrific time while Kieran slept in his car seat and I watched.

Kieran is becoming so interactive. We're loving all his smiles and cooing. Unfortunately, right now he's got a bit of a cold, probably given to him by his loving mother. So, he's congested and sleeps in his swing in order to keep the drainage under control. Otherwise we wake up to very pathetic sounds of him trying desperately to breathe through his nose. Hopefully he'll kick this thing to the curb very soon.

I had to go away for a few hours not too long ago, so Josh held the fort down, equipped with a pumped bottle for Kieran. Ayden thought bottles were terrific and was so excited to be able to help give Kieran his milk. He loves taking care of his little brother, but he's not very good at keeping the bottle in his mouth long enough for Kieran to get anything. He'd shove it in, then pull it out right away, promptly declare, "He wants his milk," and repeat the whole process again. Anyway, here's a picture of the two of them as Ayden is getting tucked into bed for the night.

This morning, as Josh was getting ready to go to work, Ayden pulled out his cd player and accompanying microphones and started singing along with the CD. It was so cute as he was always several seconds behind the CD; after hearing the words, he'd pick out the ones he was familiar with and sing them. So, here's a short clip of him singing along with "Come, Now is the Time to Worship." In case you're wondering, he's singing to a Veggie Tales Worship CD.

Baf-ooms and Special Potties

2008-02-13T17:30:00.000-08:00

In the last few days, several of our friends have posted various potty training triumphs and challenges stories to their blogs, and so, in an effort to "keep up with the Joneses," I thought I'd add ours to the lot. We haven't officially (or unofficially, for that matter), begun potty training yet, but I think today marked the "Ayden is ready, let's get this show on the road" point. I had to go to the bathroom, so Ayden informed me that he, too, wanted to go to the "baf-oom." So, I thought, "Seize the moment!" We pulled down his pants, took off his diaper and sat him on the toilet. We sat, and sat, and chatted, decided to read some books, decided to include Kieran who then sat on my lap next to the toilet while I read and Ayden sat. Alas, nothing happened.

Ayden was all game to try again later, so I suggested we set the timer and try again in 20 minutes. The timer went off, and Ayden is excited to try going potty again. We go to the bathroom take off his pants and diaper and I start to put him on the toilet. Now, since I hadn't planned on potty training him today, we don't have anything that he can sit on without falling inthe toilet, and so it is a bit precarious to get him seated on our adult toilet. So, as I'm lifting him up for him to spread his legs out over both sides, he mis-guesses and promptly places one foot in the toilet.

"Oh, Ayden," I yell, to which he responds with crying and stressful sounds. Oops. I over reacted, so, not wanting to psychologically damage him when it comes to potty training, I quickly say, "It's o.k. we can clean it up." And I pull off the wet sock and throw it in the sink. Needless to say, he has not sat on the toilet since. He is, however, extremely interested in having his own "special potty," as he's been talking about that a good bit of the night.

I do think we have one other challenge to overcome, though. For about a year, Ayden has associated the word bathroom solely with sitting on the toilet. In other words, he doesn't understand that it's actually the name of a room in the house. This has led to some rather comical moments in our house. For example, I once bought him a new toothbrush and told him to put it in the bathroom. He just stood there and looked at me rather confusedly. "Ayden," I said, "take your toothbrush and go put it in the bathroom on the counter." Finally, being the dutiful son that he is, he took the toothbrush to put in the bathroom. Seconds later I hear the toilet lid open and, horrified, I dashed to the bathroom just as he's about to drop it into the toilet! Some of you might think he just wanted to drop it in the toilet, but, really, believe me, he thinks the word bathroom, in all it's contexts refers to the toilet.

In other news, Kieran is, as I've said nearly every post, growing like a weed. He just went in for a 6 week check up and he's now 12 pounds, 8 oz! He's doing terrific. He's smiling like crazy now and cooing away, so that's fun.

A few weeks ago, the boys both wore ties to church in order to be like dad. Ayden loved doing it and after a while, wanted his tie outside of his vest so that it was even more like Dad (who wasn't wearing a vest that day) and more visible.

Ah, the early morning

2008-02-02T03:44:00.001-08:00

Last night was not the greatest in the Kieran-sleeping front, and it was all the more unfortunate because Josh had to be at church by 7 this morning. So, when he got up at 6:15, I decided to also give up on the sleeping thing and enjoy a quiet house until Ayden and Kieran got up. (Kieran, of course, threw in the towel around 6 and is now sleeping like the proverbial baby. Gotta love it!)

Anyway, I thought I'd share some of Ayden's latest adventures with a few comments about Kieran thrown in.

This is a picture of Ayden and his friend Malia. Malia's family has become dear friends of ours. Amanda, her mom, and I get together fairly regularly, and her dad Dan is another pastor at our church. He and Josh spend a lot of time together "talking church." Anyway, Ayden loves their family and their three kids, as do we. So, Amanda, Malia (4), and Jacob (1.5), Ayden, Kieran, and I got together earlier this week at the mall. The mall has an arcade room which thrills Malia and Ayden to no end. Here they are enjoying the motorcycle games.

Ayden LOVES wrestling and bouncing around on the bed. His favorite game is for Josh or I to lay at the foot of the bed while he goes up by the pillows. Then, he jumps on us (as he's doing in this picture), and we pick him up and throw him back to the head of the bed. This game is usually instigated by him saying, "throw me, mommy" or "tackle (i.e., tickle) me" which usually results in him also being thrown.

Ayden loves anything that has buttons and is electronic. So, cell phones and computers are some of his favorite things. Thank-goodness for the Sesame street computer game (or peeung bame, as Ayden says) and child-friendly web sites. Here's Ayden sitting at his table in the kitchen, playing along with Elmo and Big Bird.

Kieran continues to be a joyful addition to our family. He's becoming more alert all the time and is starting to fall into a wake-sleep rhythm that holds consistent for at least several days at a time. He's growing so quickly! Some days I look at him and think he's grown by leaps and bounds over night!

I love watching Kieran and Ayden together. Ayden does a great job with his little brother. If Kieran is crying, he wants to know "whats the ma-ung" (what's the matter) and he's always ready to offer him his "pacifi-ung"(pacifier). (Ayden doesn't quite have the "er" sound down yet, so it's substituted with the sound -ung.) Anyway, here's a typical picture of their interactions together. Sorry it's kind of dark. Not sure if I forgot to turn on lights or what:)

Food, Fun, and Fellowship

2008-01-22T13:38:00.000-08:00

About two weeks ago, Josh's folks visited for a few days, and they had a terrific time playing with Ayden and meeting Kieran. We had a great time visitng Cleveland's West Side Market, one of the country's oldest indoor markets. If you ever want to get unusual meats, bakery, cheese, etc, this is the place to go!! The last night of their visit we had my folks over also. We enjoyed a pizza dinner that culminated in a luscious dessert centering around a chocolate fountain my folks gave Josh and me for our anniversary. We dipped graham crackers, pretzels, pringles, bananas, chocolate chip cookies, and marshmallows. It was a terrific treat!

Grammy Foote and Ayden reading

Grandpa Foote and Ayden

Our small group gets together twice a month, and at this particular meeting we enjoyed the leftovers from the chocolate fountain party we had with our families. The group enjoyed it tremendously, especially the kids:)

Ayden taking a break from the fountain.

Kieran is changing all the time and growing quickly. He's lengthening his awake periods, which is really fun. Last night, my mom was over for the evening, and Kieran was wide awake for about an hour! It was great to be able to see his eyes that whole time and, he even smiled and cooed a few times. To top it all off, he slept for three hours at a time last night instead of the two he had been doing! Three hours of straight sleep felt great!

Kieran and Grandma Trickel

Ayden loves his little brother and makes sure he has his pacifier whenever he might need it. He's very generous with his kisses and likes to join Kieran on the boppy whenever he can.

Life with four

2008-01-08T13:14:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! We've been settling into our new life now with two kids. Kieran is a good sleeper, so we get up about every three to four hours. Not bad. Ayden continues to love his little brother and often volunteers to help get him out of his bed if he's crying. I coninue to enjoy watching the two of them together, and it is truly very precious to see Ayden love his brother.

Here are some pictures of our latest "life moments."

Josh, Ayden and Kieran watching Veggie Tales.

Me and Kieran

Ayden holding Kieran.

A few months ago, we had a tree cut down in our yard. Ayden watched with great interest nearly the whole time, and since then, has spent much time pretending to cut things down with pretend saws or axes. Tpically, since he hasn't had a play saw or ax, he would use the remote controller to one of his cars. Today at Target, though, I spotted a Bob the Builder accessory set with a saw and few other tool items. Ayden has been in heaven the rest of today, cutting down some pieces of styrofoam. We have shreds throughout the house, but we also have a very happy two-year-old construction worker. Hope you enjoy the video--when Ayden talks about getting dirty, he's referring to the pieces of styrofoam he's getting on himself.

Kieran Isaac Foote

2007-12-30T17:47:00.000-08:00

Friday, December 28th, we welcomed Kieran Isaac Foote into our family! He was born at 1:26 in the afternoon, weighed 7lbs, 9 oz and was 20 inches long. Everything went perfectly, and he's a beautiful baby boy!! For more pictures, visit our Foote photos page.

We came home from the hospital this afternoon, and so far have made a trip to the library and groccery store. I think it took us about an hour to get out of the house, but we made it and it felt good to get out. Ayden loves his new little brother. He spent the weekend with Grandma and Grandpa Trickel and Aunt Carrie. He was always so excited to come to the hospital and see "Baby Kieran." He loves holding him and smothering him with kisses. It is truly a joy to watch the two of them together.

The new family of four!

Home for Christmas

2007-12-18T05:48:00.000-08:00

This past weekend Josh successfully organized his first Christmas extravaganza. It was terrific, and I was so proud of him. The event was called Home for Christmas, and some of its features were a Southern Gospel choir, guitar/sax duet, children's choir, men's quartet, and traditional choir. The gala was followed by a very nice coffee house. Ironically, the evening opened with Josh singing a rendition of "Let It Snow" when we were hours away from our first blustery storm. The concert closed with a song Josh wrote specifically for the evening. It was wonderful, and I'm working on getting video of it posted. Josh did terrific work!

Josh and Dave playing their duet.

Southern Gospel ensemble

In other news, we've been blessed by a wonderful small group at our church. One of the women in the group threw me a diaper shower a few weeks ago, and we're set for diapers for quite a while! Any day now we should have a baby. Sooner, would be terrific. Personally, I think this was an ideal week (actually, today is ideal!) to have him since there would be some distance between his birthday and Christmas, but we'll see what he thinks. We're very excited. I'm still feeling okay and am having some contractions in the evening, but never anything productive enough for a baby:)

Me with Sue and Marla (the shower hostess), two women in our small group.

Family pic by our decorated tree.

Gymbo Class

2007-12-04T10:20:00.000-08:00

Fridays are a highlight in our house as they bring the much-anticipated "Gymbo class." A perk from my job at Gymboree is a seventy-percent discount at Gymboree's Play and Music Classes. So, Ayden goes to Gymbo class once a week where he gets to play on toddler-sized gym equipment. Each class is centered around a theme that encourages the kids to utilize their imagination. Last week we were at the zoo, and the kids were lions in their cage, monkeys climbing around, and zoo keepers feeding alligators fish. Ayden loves it!!

Enjoying the mini-trampoline.

Playing basketball is a favorite activity each week.

There are bridges and various things to climb/jump/and slide down.

Probably one of Ayden's favorite parts is getting his Gymbo stamps at the end of class. When class is over, everyone leaves the gym area, sanitizes their hands, and gets the much-coveted gymbo stamp. (The stamp is one of Gymbo the clown. This one is upside-down.) The kids take these stamps very seriously. Usually, they get one on each hand and then pull up their shirts to get on one on their tummy. Where the tummy stamp started, I don't know, but just try not giving it to them!!

New Holiday Traditions

2007-11-12T05:52:00.000-08:00

Ayden and I have started a new holiday tradition this year. Every week we're making a new Christmas cookie. As you can see, the process is quite fun and licking the beaters is a given. This week we made peanut butter cups, and next week we're doing cookie cutter cookies and decorating them with frosting. We'll see how many different types of cookies we end up having, as it all depends on when baby decides to be born:)

Ayden's taken to liking having his picture taken and then "seeing Ayden" on the camera when we're done. Here are two photos he specifically requested. Yes, he only sucks his thumb when he's got a finger in his belly button (or bee-bee, as he calls it). The diaper with slippers look was also specifically requested:)

Foote Family Blog Debut

2007-11-01T04:20:00.000-07:00

In an effort to stay better connected, I've decided to join the world of bloggers. It seems many are staying in touch this way, and I've been feeling out of the loop. So, here goes our blog...

Yesterday Ayden had his first Trick-or-Treating experience. He loved it and went as Bob the Builder. Originally, he was slotted to go as a lion, but the costume wasn't very well received by him (i.e., tears at the sight of it sometimes). Fortunately, it was only borrowed and not purchased and the more familiar Bob the Builder accessories fit the bill. Ayden pushed his truck from house, using its bench as his bucket. (It doubles as a seat and storage container for his tools, so we removed the tools and replaced them with candy.) The evening was a huge success!

Ayden taking Bob the Builder very seriously

Ayden ready to go!

In more general family news, Ayden is now two and loving it. We continue to enjoy his emerging personality. He loves reading, pushing his trucks around with anyone who will join him, and going bye-bye. I hear during most outings, "no home, no home," but we typically end up going home eventually:)

Ayden's emerging wild side

Josh and I continue to plug away at our various jobs. Josh's church job is going well, and he's gearing up now for the Christmas season. This year, he's planning an outreach concert for December 14 and 15. He's got a good team of volunteers, and plans are starting to come together nicely. I'm working part-time at the church doing copy editing work and publicity. It's a very small job, about 15 hours/month. To supplement that, I work about 10 hours a week at Gymboree. Not my life goal, but it's working for this season in our lives. At Gymboree, I get to look at lots of pretty clothes for kids, that's for sure.