My goodness it has been such a long time since I wrote a blog.  I will work on the blog and update it over the next couple days but I thought I would link you to some pictures of our Hi-Why-EE vacation for a teaser - https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/107863985496886308022/albums/5742447295808896241?authkey=CLvbqtPlz7rchAE

I think one of my favorite memories from the month of December was Hudson’s new habit of coming home, getting out of the car, and instantly saying I watch little Einsteins in your bed.  He barely gets to the door before removing his clothing and he always leaves a trail of shirts, shoes, and pants from the door to mommy and daddy big bed.  He cuddles under the blankets in nothing but his diaper and watches along as the Little Einsteins blast off and sing silly song.  I love when he says “That silly”.  He is saying so much more and boy is he funny.  The kid wakes up way too early with way too much happiness and energy.  Its hard to be happy that early in the morning, but its hard to not be happy when he starts demanding and directing you to do what he wants.  I want a show, make my dinna, change my dipa.

Dancing

My boys love music and dancing.  We all remember Sawyer and the donkey dance.  Well the Donkey Dance has moved over and more sophisticated dance moves have entered the arena.  Sawyer loves to shake, wiggle, and jump to the sounds of today’s pop hits and Girls Just Want To Have Fun.  Hudson loves to copy the moves and jump off the treadmill and roll.  Bedtime routine is pretty exciting with our loud music and silly dance moves.

Leading up to Xmas
The weeks and days leading up to Christmas are the most fun.  We have way too many activities planned and our schedule is packed.  We need an iPhone with Siri just to keep up.  Cookie parties, play dates, decorating, parties, and seeing Santa.  Seeing Santa was fun.  Santa made is grand entrance, sat at the chair, and called Hudson to his lap.  I thought H would freak out because he was first but he was fine and told Santa what he wanted - a train and a black and yellow shooter thing….that’s what he told me he told him.  A few other kids went up, freaked out, and built Sawyers anxiety.  When Sawyers name was called he bolted.  Mommy caught up with him, Sawyer wanted nothing to do with santa but with some encouraging he got his brave face on, sat on Santa’s lap and whispered in Santa’s ear that he wanted marbles.  Santa didn’t know any of this.

Christmas is awesome when you see it though the eyes of your small children.  I have been loving the Holidays more and more.  Watching  Sawyer bending in all directions trying to sneak a peak at what Hudson got him was cute.  There was a small crease in the paper that left a tiny opening and Sawyer thought he could twist enough to peak in.  Hudson pretty much didnt mess with the tree but Sawyer wanted to pile up his gifts into his own little pile.  He can read/recognize names now so he was always under the tree trying to see who the package was for.  I told him the same thing my mom use to bark at me - if you open it the gift will go back.  He didn’t open anything, he didn’t even really ask.  He just got excited to see stuff appearing under the tree.

Christmas Ever was fun.  The boys were super excited and wanted to keep looking outside for a blinking red nose.  About the 5th trip outside we spotted the red nose in the sky and hurried off too bed.  Santa doesn’t come unless you are in bed sleeping.  And he knows if you’re awake…

Christmas Songs were fun this year too.  The boys liked my random renditions of Santa Claus is Coming to Town.  I liked to change the words to Santa Claus is Coming to Our House.  Hudson  would end the song for me by belting out OUR HOUSE as loud as he could with one hand lifted to the sky.  He is a good singer!

Family
Christmas makes me miss my family more than any other holiday.  Not sure why, but I always find myself daydreaming about PA, snow, hugs from those that I miss insanely and love much, When Saywer asks when we are going to see the snow at Papas and Grandma Janes it takes all I have to keep myself from booking us a trip.  Thankfully I hate being cold and family will be visiting Cali soon.

Xmas Day

Christmas day was a little long.  We started the day in the 5 o’clock hour with opening gifts.  Sawyer was very excited about everything he opened.  He appreciated everything, even the clothes.  Hudson started by seeing what Sawyer had and what he didn’t have.  “I dont have one of those” was his favorite saying until he realized he also had some cool stuff wrapped up in those bright packages.  The boys ended up with some cool stuff - tools, crasher cars, fortimajigs, marbles, shooter things, talking cars, etc.  Car crashers are these remote controlled cars with guys sitting in them.  When you crash into the other car the guy goes flying in the air.  They are fun and Sawyer said it was his favorite gift.  Hudson loved his trampoline.  He was demonstrating his one foot jump, twist jumper, and dance jumps.  My least favorite gift was the 400 piece marble set.  Seriously!  It says 8+ but I think that is the number of hours it takes to build it.  The monstrous contraption is sitting on our table waiting for me to finish it.  I dont know how though.   Fortimajigs are my favorite gift.  We use to have blankets and pillows to build forts but these cool things connect with velcro and elastic loops to just about anything to make some very cool forts.  We will get years of play out of these things.

Post Christmas Insanity

This week we are dealing with the post Christmas insanity from the boys.  I think its coming down from all the activity or the over stimulation from too many treats and so many toys.  I also think it needs to end soon or I might pack myself away with all the Christmas decorations.

 I hope that the days come easy and the moments pass slow, And each road leads you where you want to go…I am happy to see the Christmas lights and decorations go , but I am sad to see 2011 end.  2011 definitely lead where I wanted it to go.  Even if it started with someone stealing our car, we had to endure that stinking Super Bowl loss, and several of our moments from the 365 days were sprinkled with adversity, We sure did have a pretty good year.  I don’t believe in some higher power that drags me along, I don’t believe that I will arrive at some destiny, but I do believe in TRYING to maintain a positive outlook, doing lots of hard work, some sharing and extra caring for those I love.  I think focusing on all of this will make 2012 as good as 2011, if not better! I think everything we wish for and work for will come true.  In 2012 I hope my road leads me where I want to go.  I want more time with my family - those near and far.  I want to hug the women I love.  I want to swim  in clear blue water with turtles and not sharks.  I want to watch Cinnamon and Chad finally tie the knot.   I want to swim in the creek and chase fireflies.  I want to get my jeep dirty.  I want to celebrate by crying like a baby the day my first boy goes to Kindergarten.  I want to go to the happiest place on earth when my baby boy turns three.  I want to be mean to ice cream, beer, sugar and fat and be extra friendly to the treadmill, golf course, books, and the great outdoors.  I want less facebook and more face time.  My 2012 dreams aren’t too big so I think its the year they will all come true.

It will be a good year for the boys if some of their goals become reality.  Hudson’s big goal for 2012 is to use the potty and to move into a big boy bed.  He has his superhero underwear to help conquer his mission but his desire isn’t quite there.  He talks about using the potty like a big boy and then tells us he is still little.   Even Sawyer tries to give Hudson some incentive by offering up toys.  He hasn’t budged.  Sawyer’s goals for this coming year are to see his Papa, not drop the rings, find unique treasure and awesome bugs and run his first fun run.  We all want to use the playhouse more and use the TV less (i’m adding that part because the boys love their shows).   Lastly, we hope 2012 brings cool new camping adventures.

Pictures can be found here.  Enjoy the pictures and be safe celebrating the coming New Year.  We hope your 2012 comes easy, the days pass slow, and each road leads you where you want to go.

Seriously, they say they put 1000 pounds of fish in that lake.  They show pictures of people catching fish.  Last year we witnessed the catching of 2 large trout.  Can we catch a single fish?  NO.  I guess I should be thankful for the bite the Sawyer did get but explaining to a 4 and 2 year old that sometimes we just don’t catch fish is hard.  If fishing is a category for dad of the year there is no way I win or even come close.  I suck.  I haven’t caught a fish since that one time I caught that monster Musky out in front of the house in Sandhole.  It took me an hour to reel it in.  It was as big as me and had teeth as sharp as tiny razors.   I guess I will have to carry that fish picture with me so my kids know I am not a complete fishing failure.  I know what you are thinking but don’t say it.  Don’t you think I thought of different bait?  They don’t sell a bait we haven’t tried.  Heck, after the 2 little girls caught those monster trout next to us last year, I ran to the store and bought the exact same pink Powerbait the used.  What a wast of 6 bucks.  Better luck next time right…I will be watching them dump the fish in the lake next time so I know there are fish in there.

Thanksgiving

This year we stayed home and had a small Thanksgiving, just the five of us.  Diana did a nice job cooking turkey and all the extras.  I think the boys has a decent day just hanging out, watching the parade, and then going to the ice rink. Sawyer had never been skating before but took right to the ice and loved it. I was very proud of him for falling on his butt, knocking the ice off, and getting back up for some more.  There was a man there that kept falling.  He looked completely silly.  Sawyer realized even grown ups have a hard time doing stuff.  I always tell him if something isn’t easy you just need to keep practicing and sooner or later you will get better at it (hmmm, maybe that’s the issue.  I don’t practice fishing enough).  Hudson wasn’t so into the skating.  He made an attempt but quickly said “Me no like this place” and wanted to leave.  He and grandma spent the hour or more that Sawyer skated looking at waterfalls and exploring.

We asked the boys what they are thankful for this year.  Grandma Jane has annoyed Dad, Missy, Pedro and I for many years with the questions about what we are thankful for so I decided to carry on the family tradition.  Sawyer giggled and said Fruit Snacks.  Hudson thought about it for a long time and quietly said Toys.  I am very thankful for my family.  Life is so good with these two boys and I am thankful to be their dad.

Truckhaven Hills or as I like to call it, Stuckhaven

I’m also thankful Joey and the other Holdens got me into Jeepin. We took another trip in the Jeep this month after putting on some tires that were much larger than the last set.  This Jeepin stuff is silly fun.  The more we jeep the more we (I) spend to make the jeep more capable.  It is more capable than the boys or Diana would like but after the weekend it needs more - lockers, more lift, something to cover the roll bar (Diana hit her head 100 times), brake lines, etc.  We spent about six hours driving around the desert the Saturday after Thanksgiving with a group from the Jeep club.  Sawyer was bored about an hour in and wanted to get out of the Jeep to explore or hunt treasure.  Hudson didnt like the sound of the “too big for my life tires” rubbing against the inside of the fender.  Diana didnt like watching the Jeep in front of us come up off the ground a couple times.  The one time she actually got out and we all walked down the hill.  Joey drove the jeep down so I didnt have to be the only guy the rolled that day.  After getting stuck 3 times in not so hard obstacles I decided I wouldnt push my like.  A nice jeeper named John taught me a lot that day, though, and if my kids and wife ever let me go again I will keep practicing, improving, and making the jeep more capable so we can get stucker in cooler places.  Hudsee, Me no like that rubbing sound either and I will deal with it

 We didnt take many pictures this month but here they are.

 Jeepin to the Caves

We started off the fall with a little jeep trip to the desert to check out the Mud Caves.  What an awesome way to spend a couple days.  We got out to the caves in the middle of the day with plenty of time to explore.  We grabbed our lights and found some caves.  About 500 feet in, or maybe 100, I started thinking about “I shouldn’t be alive”, “Alive” and every other horrible thing my eyes have seen.  I grabbed Hudson and started for the opening, LIGHT.  Passing some friends, I said “Hudson doesn’t like it, so I am taking him outside”.  Hudson then yelled, “No me like it”.  When did this little guy start talking!!!!

Well, even though I will never live down the sudden case of claustrophobia, I enjoyed the opportunity to teach my boys a good lesson.  No, not the one where I taught Hudson to lie.  I taught Sawyer that sometimes even dad isn’t brave, sometimes you are the brave one.  I tried my brave face.  I tried talking myself into my happy place.  I tried but I couldn’t deal with being in those tight spots and when Sawyer came out like an hour later the first thing he said to me was “Daddy, I am braver than you”.

Jeeping with Holdens was a great experience.  Sawyer said his favorite part was the large lantern we released in honor of Sammy’s grandpa, JoeMama.  That part was really cool and I am glad we got to share in the experience.  The fire lantern flew way, way up in the dark, star filled night.   Sawyer asked if the lantern went all the way to heaven to say hi to Sammy’s grandpa.  Pretty sure it went that high.  When it came floating back down Joey sprinted across cactus, rocks, and up hills to retrieve it.

I hope we get to go off road 20 more times this fall/winter.  We love the jeep and getting away from the city is great.

Tumble, Swim, Soccer

September and October have been about getting the boys involved in something else.  Sawyer wanted to take swimming lessons and play soccer.  Hudson wanted to do Tumbling.  Hudson was slow to warm up to the idea of rolling and bouncing around but once he did he enjoyed himself.  Sawyer never really warmed up to soccer so I don’t think we will have a Pele on our hands.  He did like the water and enjoyed swimming, as long as it wasn’t out in the deep part.  He will hold his breath for 2 minutes under the water but you take him to a part he cant touch the bottom and he freaks out. I think another class and he will be a little shark.

Secrets.  We all them.  One day we drove mommy to work.  The boys started asking to go to my work.  I told them we cant because of special passes and secrets and blah, blah, blah.  Diana then asked Sawyer if he had secrets.  He laughed and said yes.  He proceeded to tell us about burying a toy in the yard at school and its still there….laughing about it you could tell he really likes having his secrets.

So we finally stopped talking about getting rid of the massive fireplace and did it.  The days leading up to the work being done we kept telling Sawyer we were removing the fireplace.  Each time he would tell us NOOOOO that he liked it and wanted it to remain.  Instead of telling him when he bought a house he could buy one with a nice big useless fireplace in the middle, I asked a few questions and found out he didn’t want to get rid of fireplace because of Santa.  I didn’t even think of that one.  Santa brings gifts to us and he does it by coming down that chimney.  How would he bring us stuff?  Well, after a little talk about Santa’s Secret Key and the fact that daddy never had a fireplace and still got plenty of gifts, He was ok with the fireplace going.  He actually likes it now because he can throw and kick balls even farther.  First toss right into a lamp.  Sweet!

The Shreck house has turned into a paper airport - tons of paper planes…denise got me a paper airplane book.  best gift ever.  I cant make half the airplanes in the book but I try and we fly them around the house and in the yard.  I got one stuck on the house.  Sawyer likes to color his fire colors.  Hudson likes to chase them down and then point at the real airplanes flying by and say like dis one, like dis one.

Trick or treat smell my feet give me something good to eat

Halloween was a blast this year. Diana planned a nice little neighborhood gathering in our front yard and we used our house as base camp for the treating expedition.  It was a long night of passing out candy and watching the kids have a blast.  I think they finally stopped counting their stash of sugary goodness about 10.

October was great but I think my favorite part was seeing Hudson get into the spirit of Halloween.  We first put the costume on him the early part of October and he had to fly around the neighborhood with it on.  Arms back and a big smile on his face he raced up and down Santee looking for bad guys.  Even as trick or treat disappears from the rear view, Hudson has been saying that he will put on his costume so he can be batman.  I batman.  I can run fast and fly.  I bet you can batman!  You better watch out for your brother the Knight though.  He thinks he has super powers that can take you out!

Lots of pictures here 

On to Turkey Day and The insanity of Gifting.  Let the Holidays Begin!

At 4 he gets the wishing idea.  He understands wanting stuff and things.  Thankfully, most of his wanting starts with treats, contraptions, sharks or dragons and ends in treats or contraptions.  If I had to guess what he wished for I would say he wanted the wish fairy to bring him a treat making contraption pulled by a shark and a dragon.  I hope whatever he wished, his wishes come true.

I Love you very much and since you busted into my life at 6:46 that September day back in 2007, I don’t blow out a candle, see a falling star, crack a wishbone, or drop a coin in a fountain without wishing that you (and your brother) have a 100 happy, healthy, wealthy, successful years enjoying the journey and becoming whatever it is you become.  Right now, I love that you are a treat eating, shark fishing, dragon slaying, contraption making 4 year old.  Happy 4 Birthday Sawyer Bean.

Birthday Pics Here

ok.  Enough of that!

Since the last time I wrote on July 16th we have had a fun-filled, busy summer.  We’ve had birthday parties, lots of cakes and cupcakes, movies at the lake, sprayground, beach, and a trip to Chuck Cheese (maybe the last).  Check out the pictures here.

We spent a long weekend in Laughlin with Uncle Travis, Bria, and our “family”.  It was extra relaxing and hot.  You know its hot when you open the car door and your kids start screaming HOOOOOT HOT HOT like they had just had a steaming cup of liquid dumped on them.  The boys did enjoy the hot days playing in the cool water of the lake.  Sawyer has become quite the little swimmer.  I think the cutest part of the weekend was his new best friend, Karen, as he called her.  She couldn’t leave him.  He wanted to be near her always.  I think the least favorite part of the trip was Hudson’s inability to go to sleep.  He must have had a brain spurt or something that started that weekend because he never wanted to sleep.  It took an hour or two to get him to bed.  Not fun.

Hudson Turns 2
I feel extremely blessed to have two sons that are healthy, mostly happy, easy to parent, and love the heck out of each other.
Im going to say it because it is true, its hard to believe Hudson is two.     We had a Fire guy birthday party for Hudson on Sunday at Santee Lakes and the sprayground to celebrate.  Everyone had a great time and Hudson really liked his firetruck cake.  You can see his face.  It was priceless.

Right after Hudson was born I sat down and drafted a list, sort of a compass for raising my boys.  Here are the first couple items from my list:

1. Share and care, its that simple.
2. Teach them that quitting is not an option, that determination will take you far.

Either Diana and I did an awesome job the last 2 years parenting and teaching Hudson these values, or he was just born with traits that will allow me to check these off as complete for him.  Im pretty sure I had very little to do with it and I think he was just born with a heart that is “two sizes too big”.  He started saying I love you a while ago and its awesome when your child tells you, unprompted, that they love you.  Mommy leaves for work and H stands at the screen door yelling, Bye, bye mommy, I love you.  Melts your heart, seriously.  If you could just record that and hear it when things arent going your way!  When he goes to bed he goes to Sawyer, kisses him, tells him good night, and says I love you.  Its freaking adorable.  I want to eat him up each time he does it.  I can see H being a lot like uncle Tom.  Manly, a joker, brutally honest, sometimes extremely insensitive, but probably one of the most caring loving people you will ever meet.  We should all take a lesson from Hudsee Bear.  You should always share with someone, even if its your last one AND you should always tell those you care most about that you love them.
As amazing as his ability to love is, his HEART, determination, resolve or whatever you want to call it is even more amazing.  Sometimes I call it stubborn, but that gives it such a negative label.  When he is unhappy and I want him to do something other than what he is doing, sure, its stubborn.  When he is focused on getting something done or learning a new task, its determination.  His ability to keep going is awesome.  He is definitely not a quitter.  He doesnt back down.  He doesnt give in. He sets his mark and just stays the course.  At two he uses his skill to take down his brother, to outlast his parents, or to learn a new task, but in 10-20 years he will be using this same two-size too big heart to tackle a running back, to close a deal, to land on mars, to build a rocket, to do whatever he decides to do.  I absolutely love Hudson’s heart and hope he never ever gives up his ability to love or his ability to never quit.

So whats new with Sawyer?  The kid is turning into MacGyver, quite the little engineer and contraption builder we have. He loves to build anything that can be used to catch sharks, fish, a brother.  He could spend hours building cars, planes, hooks, etc., etc. out of our tinker toys.  He likes hooking things together with this little blue loop thingy or Mr Snake tied in one of his pretty impressive knots.  If you arent careful you can sometimes find yourself tied up and trapped in one of his contraptions.
He is also turning into a fish.  Sawyer has started diving under the water, which is pretty cool to watch.  He doesnt like to go into deep water, but loves to “dive” into waist deep water and go under, holding his breath for “5 minutes”.  H got a blow up pool that we have been playing in and practicing our swim moves.  He should be ready for snorkeling in Hawaii next summer.

I think my favorite recent Sawyer saying is when he told me he was marrying Quinlin.  Why?  “Because she isn’t cranky in the morning”  Brilliant.  Not one of the top things I looked for in a wife but the kid is thinking straight.

One of the more exciting things this summer has been the snake situation at the Shreck house.  This summer we have had 3 rattle snakes.  1 in the driveway.  2 in the back.  1 of the ones in the back was a monster of a rattler that crawled under the playhouse and I had to call the fire department to come get it.  Of course Emma cornered the 2 snakes in the back and got bit both times…like 3 weeks apart.  Diana said she thinks Emma is addicted to venom and likes getting bit.  Each time Emma has been bit, she takes a day or so to get better and then she is just fine.  Her days are numbered if she keeps messing with snakes.  I hate that we get so many snakes.  If the housing market was different I would be moving, period.  One of these days it wont be Emma that is bit by a snake!  We’ve tried repellant but that doesnt work.  This fall there will be a nice fence built that should prevent snakes from crawling down into our yard.

These fire guys were surprised by the size of the last one.  Thankfully they have long grabbers that can reach ticked off snakes from a distance.  The one young fire guy didnt seem thrilled about this “emergency” call.  I guess he has a bit of a snake issue.  My boys were happy to get up close and take a look though once the snake was in the bucket.

Enjoy the last weekend of the summer.

Lightning bugs: You forget how awesome it is to catch fireflies and put them in a jar.  My boys learned quickly that these glowers were fun to chase down and try to catch.  Sawyer developed a technique - hit em to knock them down, then scoop them up.  He got pretty good at catching bugs.  Hudson had a little help from his friends but he got the hang of it and snagged a few. - Its not great quality but here is a video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dbTsxHpSIY

Sawyer finally met Cody after sleeping with a picture of him for a year.  Uncle Mike and Cody have had an has The Creason kids are great.  It was a pleasure hanging out with them all week.  One of my favorite memories was Austin stuck on a big rock and Jacks beating us at hold em, Fonzor trying to cast the fishing pool into the sweet spot right by the tire.  Where was Laney…has anyone seen Laney…asleep on the couch.  Nice.  We miss you guys and can’t wait to hang with you again.  Sawyer asks every single day - when we gonna be back in Pennsylvania…soon buddy, soon!

Vacation was great for the boys.  They did country things that we city dwellers just dont enjoy ever.  Life was slow and simple for 9 days.  Sawyer rarely had on real clothes.  Shoes were always optional.  He loved his time with cousins and new friends.  I think his favorite moment was probably when the big girls played with him and put him up in some cheerleader move.  His arms raised in victory formation and the smile on his face was precious. Hudson wouldnt sleep much .  We started taking the boys “looking for deer” right before it got dark.  After a few days of this they started protesting, saying they were not looking for deer tonight.  Hudson was pretty cute though saying “Mommy deer”, where are you”  And each time we saw a deer he would call it a giraffe.  Cute but not right.  We need to see what that boy is doing in school.

One of Hudsons favorite toys in PA was a stroller and baby doll.  First thing we did when we got home…bought a stroller and babydoll.

Diana wrote a top 5 for her PA memories.

Top 5 PA memories…
1. Hudson calling all the deer giraffes
2. Sawyer mastering the skills of fishing (he caught 2!) swimming, & lightening bug catching
3. Sitting by the campfire in the rain with only those made of sugar running for cover
4. Trying to pick wild black raspberries faster than Hudson could eat them.
5. Watching Bob & Mike track a bear, giving up myself and only getting to see the pictures of it.

I could write a list of 50 memories that were my favorite.  We all had a great time and built good memories.  See for yourself.  I took a ton of photos - http://shreckfamily.com//shreckphotos/thumbnails.php?album=22

Life is pretty good right now.  The boys are getting to a point where they actually enjoy playing with each other.  The first few days back to the routine they realized they missed each other.  They were more loving sharing and caring.  Hudson’s sharing and caring of his brother amazes me.  The kid is selfless.  Seriously, any kid that would give up a treat so his brother can have more is impressive.  He might run out to be a social worker like his mommy.

I also think the last blog was right after our off roading experience with Joey and Sammy.  Sawyer loved the camping/off roading experience so much that he infected his brother with the jeep bug.  We couldnt drive around town without those two screaming out JEEEEEEP like a 100 times.  I dont have many hobbies in life.  Im kind of a boring person so I thought why not get a jeep and make it my hobby.  My boys love it.  I want to feel more manly(sitting on your arse programming all day isn’t going to land me a show on discovery channel) and Diana doesn’t really want me working on projects around the house.  My neighbor had a Jeep Cherokee sitting in his driveway for 5 years.  Never moved.   So one night, the boys and I walked up and asked if he wanted to sell it.  A few weeks later, Hudson and I are driving around town arguing about whose Jeep it is.  He always says My JEEEEEP.  Sawyer tells him he isnt old enough but he can have a jeep just like it when he is older.  After some man sessions in the garage, a ton of freebies from Joey, and a couple thousand bucks, we were taking our first camping trip to Big Bear.  We had a blast. Diana dropped a few curse words in front of her children. Funny that her children were laughing and having a good time when she was freaking out.  Silly mommy.  The jeep wont just roll over.

Its hard not enjoying Hudson right now.  He is a couple month shy of two and is really blossoming.  You can see how he feels more grown up.  He is communicating which is so helpful.  I love watching him and Sawyer talk.  Its adorable.  I think my favorite thing Hudson says is No Sawyer.  Its so cute.  The other saying is “I running”.  He can’t run without letting everyone know that is what he is doing.  I running. I running.  I running.  Of course I think JEEEEEEP is super cute too because it made me go out and buy a jeep.

Hudson doesn’t like his name.  Diana was asking him what his name was one evening.  He kept saying I Luke.  We called him Luke for a couple days.  Each time you tried to call him Hudson he would yell I LUKE.

Hats have become one of Hudsons favorite things.  Some kids sleep with blankets or stuffed toys, Hudson has to have his black fire guy hat.  He wears it everywhere.  If I want him to have better behavior I threaten to take his fire hat.  Check out some of the pictures.  Its pretty cute.

Sawyer has recently become quite the dreamer.  He wakes up each morning and tells us the dream he had last night.  At first he didn’t tell us he was dreaming.  When camping there was this guy we called bear claw because of some love marks he had on his neck.  Sawyer was sure Diana and Bear Claw were talking at the park near our house.  I was there too.  We spent an hour trying to figure this out.  The next day we realized it was a dream he had.  Sawyer Dreams a lot.  One day he dreamed that there was a fire in our house and Hudson took all of his toys out.  He and Hudson were fire guys.  The next day all of his friends were camping with dinosaurs. My favorite was Hudson drinking beer and spitting it all over me.

Girls just want to have fun is Sawyers favorite song.  He grins ear to ear when I, I mean Diana, plays that song.   Sawyer recently found out that girls dont just want to have fun.  While playing at a place called Funbelievable, He was kicked out of a girls fort.  I think he actually started the fort, a 10 year old girl helped him, invited all of her friends when it was done, then kicked him out.  He was so sad.  He cried and it was one of those moments I just wanted to make better for him.  Then I realized he wasn’t mad because they kicked him out.  He was mad because he wasn’t next to his new older girl friend.

Off to PA this week.  I am so ready to go “home” and see my family.  I miss them immensely.  Sawyer was 9 months last time we were in Putneyville.  Its been way too long and there isnt a day that passes that I don’t think about people there or dream of living there.  I know that’s silly but a boy can dream.   I can’t wait to show my boys lots of fun stuff we just don’t get living here in San Diego.  Sawyer is excited about hunting worms, catching crabs, fishing, and seeing his family.  Papa bought a new toy and Sawyer can’t wait to off road with him in it.  Hudson can’t wait to meet everyone.  Get ready Sandhole.  Here we come.

Pictures from the last couple months can be found here.

I know, how can those sweet cheeks be cranky.  Ok, I am making it sound like life is bad.  It is definitely not.  It is just more challenging and different.  Its not all baby giggles and milestones anymore. One milestone we surpassed is that Hudson is not a baby anymore.   He is a full blown toddler/boy.  and when he sees other infants he calls them baby.  Its only a tiny little bit sad my baby is not a baby.  I like him being able to walk and talk.   I love that he can communicate, walk on his own, think for himself, but there is a small part of me that will miss him being a baby.

Hudson’s favorite things are spoons, five little ducks, dancing, and fresh beat band.  Spoons!  The kid had to carry one around for the longest time.  He would take all the spoons in the house.  He sees anyone enter the drawer and starts saying spoon until you give in and hand him one.  His dancing skills are pretty amazing for being my son.  He wiggles from side to side and sways his little hips and really get into the music.  He will even bust out the donkey dance from time to time.  You play Five little ducks - and this boy is in heaven.  Turn on Nick Jr and  Fresh beat band and his brain turns to mush and he is glued to the seat.  I’m not a big fan of that show,I really don’t like the guy in yellow.

Hudson has a lot of words right now.  Some more clear than others but he seems to be picking up more and more each day…Fresh Beat Band was yesterday or today…Buzz was at story time, Olivia was from school.  I do it was probably my favorite saying recently.  In the car he and Sawyer start dueling - Sawyer says one thing Hudson says another. It goes on and on for the entire car rides.  DON’T MAKE ME PULL THIS CAR OVER YOU TWO!

Off Roading

Sawyer and I went on our first camping trip this past weekend with Joe and Sammy.  We had a blast, came back with some new words, and cant stop talking about Jeeps.  Sawyer had such a great time. He didnt want to come home.  He wanted to stay in the desert and be dirty.  We’ll go back little buddy but next time there are going to be some rules.  1.  No poop in your butt talk.  2. No booty butt talk.  3. We will bring real food, not just treats.   I think Sawyer had nothing but Jellybeans on Saturday.  Surprisingly he didn’t go insane until late Sunday.  He was funny insane though until it was bedtime.  The kid smiled a lot this weekend.  You will see form the images that we enjoyed the outdoors.

We came back to Hudson saying everything. Its amazing how his language just exploded over one weekend.  Tickle tickle tickle is my new favorite Hudson thing.  He tickles your cheeks and keeps saying tuggle tuggle tuggle.  Another great thing is the “Whats that” stage.  H points at everything and says Whats That until you tell him.  S taught h to say Jeep and Poopoo Butt…really!  I guess that’s what brothers are for.

Here are the photos from this year

I have a very deep love for the Steelers.  I rarely forget a game.  I remember plays, players, where I watched games, feelings from games, and the outcome.  I have been lucky enough to see and remember 4 Black and Gold Super Bowls.  In 1996 we lost to the Cowboys.  I watched the game at the Naval Medical center on the 5th floor with some buddies.  When Neil played pitch and catch with the safety,  I was crushed.  Heck, I waited 15 years to see us get number 5 and wasn’t sure I would ever see another one.  When we finally got the one for the thumb another decade had passed.  That was the year I got ripped off and got kicked out of a Steelers Bar.  A few years later we were back winning 6.  This year the team overcame so much adversity to get back to the big game.  I was so sure this was #7.  It was not and I will never forget this game.  I will think back a decade from now and it will still make me cringe a little.  Hopefully the memories from this game will be mostly good though.  The Steelers have been a huge part of my life and this year was no different.  I think I will always remember this years Super Bowl as the year my boys fell in love with the black and gold.  They were more excited than I was the 2 weeks leading up to the big game.  In the car - Black and yellow, in the house - Black and yellow, in my sleep - black and ugh!  We played Steelers almost every single day - that’s where we tackle each other.  Sawyer wanted to wear his jersey all the time.  Hudson couldn’t stop dancing around wearing his hat backwards and wriggling his hips to Here We Go Steelers.  Sawyer kept telling us that Polamalu is his favorite player.  The two things I wont forget from the Packer - Steelers Super Bowl are my Dad and Uncle coming to San Diego to watch the game with us and Sawyer crying when I told him the Steelers lost.  Heck, I was crying too but I am not 3 and showing it would not be cool.

We had a decent party for the game with lots of people, amazing food and good drink. Larry brought a huge bbq and cooked up some Ribs and chicken.  He sprinkled magic on those ribs because they were amazing.  Jacob, one of Sawyers friends from school had a great time dancing and jumping around with us.  I think he might be a Steelers fan now.

Papa and Uncle Tom came to San Diego for the weekend.  They came to see the game…sure they did.  I think they came to see the boys.  The boys really, really loved having them here too.  Uncle Tom brought a massive bag of treats.  Hudson was all over the licorice and Sawyer couldn’t stop eating the blow pops.

The last day Papa and Tom were here we went to the beach.  You gotta love San Diego.  It was 65-70 degrees here.  In Pa, it was 6 or 7.  I’m glad I didnt have to go back to that. After spending an hour hunting for shells, walking like crabs, and falling on our butts in the very cold waves, the boys couldnt walk anymore and I had to become a mule.  Uncle Tom and Papa watched me carry these two.  That’s Papa’s hand in the picture.  He had it rough carrying the shells we found.  You might hear me complain about times like this but I shouldn’t.  I love these boys and these times.  It will be very soon that I wont be able to carry them both like this.

The last day of 2010 we decided to go hiking at Mission Trails.  We had a wonderful time exploring the dam and the trails.  It was a beautiful day.  Then we found our Expedition’s window smashed out and Diana’s purse missing.  As soon as we got home we canceled credit cards, checks, bank accounts, etc, etc.  We were too late.  The bad guys had spent several hundred dollars at Target and gas stations.  Sawyer had a hard time understanding why the bad guys would break our window and take the purse.  He had an even harder time when five days later the bad guys came to our house and stole our car, using the keys that were in the purse.  The car seat with the yellow on it was in that car.  Sawyer didn’t like that much.  We got a new car seat with yellow on it.  The car was recovered and everything should be fixed soon, but things will never be the same.

Diana got the call from Wipeout and ran the course.  We watched Wipeout episodes at our house for several days to get revved up for the course.  When Diana told Sawyer she was going to be on Wipeout, Sawyer asked “why you want to be wiped out”.  Diana - “Its fun”.  Sawyer - “It not fun to be hit in the head. oh.  ah.  ouch. ouch.”  He still says oh ah or ouch when someone gets wiped out but he has starting playing Wipeout.  He hits himself and falls down saying….ouch ouch ouch…Boy was he right.  Its been about three weeks and she is still “recovering”.  She said she has PTSD from getting smacked and bashed around.  She has been coughing up something since coming home and complaining about aches and pains.

Trout Fishing at the Lake

We got up butt early one morning to go trout fishing at the lake near our house.  Santee Lakes swears they stock hundreds and hundreds of pounds of fish.  Well, if that is true, the fish they put in that lake are about 100 pounds each because there are only 5 fish in there or the fish genetically altered to be smart little buggers.  Stocked trout should be smallish and dumb enough to bite hooks with no bait.  Well our hooks had bait.  Worms, power bait, marshmallows, corn, and salmon eggs.  None of that stuff worked. We sat there and froze our buns off while the little girls right beside us caught two of those 100 pound trout.  Seriously, I’ve seen trout that big on tv only.  The Shrecks wont be getting any reality fishing tv shows named  Santee Lake Snagger or California Catchers, more like Skunked: bare hooks and frozen toes.

Hudsee Bear

Since the last blog Hudson has turned into a totally different boy.  He has moved into the big boy class, has many words, loves trucks, and has learned to be a great hugger and cheek kisser.  His words are pretty abundant at this point but mostly he says no, bad, don’t, dad, mom, grandma,  bad boy, dump truck,  me too,  etc.  There was a few week period after he moved to his new class that all he could say was  no no no and bad boy.  He would point his finger at Sawyer and say in a stern little voice, bad boy no no no.  Sawyer hated it.  He has fallen in love with trucks.  Dump, garbage, or fire.  You name em, he loves them. Vroooom.

Diver

My brother Jeffrey asked me to call him Pedro one day as we sat on the couch watching baseball.  He was 5 or so.  I haven’t called him anything but Pedro since.  Sawyer told me the other day he didnt want to be called Sawyer.  He wanted to be called Diver.  He likes that nickname.  He called me splash.  Hudsee was Speed. Diana was snacks.  I dont think the name will stick like Pedro but its pretty darn cute.

Diver doesn’t really fit Sawyers love for bugs and worms.  I know most boys like dirt and bugs but this kid just wont stop.   He has all his friends at school hunting bugs and worms during playtime.  They get so excited over the little redworms they find.  One day they found a beetle and it was the best day ever. Sawyer would hunt worms and bugs all day if we allowed him.  He actually parted with 5 of his own dollars to purchase a bug house and net.  The kid doesn’t part with his 5 dollars for nothing.  We actually got him to stop using sippy cups by telling him he had to spend his 5 dollars on new cups. He said no thanks I will drink from a big boy cup.

Sawyer is becoming a big boy and realizing boys are not the same as girls….ya know.  Down there.  He asked me the other day how he and Hudson got out of mommies tummy.  I tried to be very general about my answer but the kid just keeps digging and asking why.  Today he has been telling us that girls don’t have penises.  He hasn’t asked what they do have yet but his little brain has been churning and the question is coming tomorrow.  Parenting is going to get harder and harder isn’t it?  I think I am just going to be as honest as I can without freaking him out.

Ok.  I am done writing.  Its been a packed 3 months and there is no way I can catch up.  I am over my Steelers funk and will do a better job blogging moving forward.