The Miami Zoo

Tj's grandparents have been in town the last couple of weeks. This past week Tj's dad took vacation time. To cap off the week we went to the Miami Zoo. We had a really fun time! We took the tram around the zoo. Joel really enjoyed the tram ride. He would get so excited when we would see the animals. He'd wrap his arms around Tj and hug him super tight. He LOVED the zoo. Vance enjoyed the time outside and being around Daddy and Pa. But his short attention span kept him from enjoying the animals.

The Miami Zoo was amazing. If it hadn't been for the tram ride we wouldn't have been able to see half the zoo. We got to see two different kinds of elephants. We were also just in time to see the elephants be fed. They were getting a special treat of tomatoes. There was one elephant that was doing tricks. He would bow down, go backwards and "speak". Joel really enjoyed the show and thought it was really funny when the elephant was going backwards and stepped on a tomato. When the elephant found the squished tomato it picked it up and then tossed it. Later at dinner he was pretending to be the elephant and would pretend to pick up a tomato and then toss it. Vance loved the rhinos! He kept saying wrhino.

It was a really fun trip. We can't wait to go back!

What We've Been Up To

So we've been staying pretty busy. It's crazy how fast time goes. To think that we're almost in the middle of January is crazy! Life is going well for us here though. The boys are constantly entertaining us. So here's what we've been up to.

-Vance is officially talking up a storm. He's just about 17 months and already putting together 3-4 word sentences. Some of his favorites are "I want Pa," and "I done pleeesh." Of course we still have his stand by words "what?!" "no way," "apple," "banana," "treat," "up," and thanks to daddy today "Happy Birthday".

-Joel continues to be our sweetheart. He regularly walks up to me and will brush his hand down my face and tell me "I love you mommy." Of course that's all it takes to make me melt. He also loves to help Vance and give him hugs.

-Both boys are water babies. Tj's parents have a swimming pool in their backyard here and so we are over there several times a week. Joel is a little fish and is learning to balance himself in the water with the help of his floating suite. Vance likes swimming but is much more fond of the hot tub. He anxiously waits for someone to take him into the hot tub. He knows and uses the word "hot tub" often when we're over at Pa's house.

-We've really enjoyed having Tj's dad working in town recently. We took a trip down to the beach to watch the sunset, gone swimming, enjoyed a trip to McDonald's where we searched out a McDonald's that had a play place.

-As a family we're really trying to get healthy so trips to the gym have become a part of our daily routine 6 days a week. Joel now looks forward to going to the "gym"- Vance no longer completely freaks out when we go. It's progress.

-Joel's imagine has officially taken off. He is constantly making me laugh with the things he comes up with. He loves playing with his kitchen and making me and Tj dinner. Of course we think we might be raising a real chef, not so much because his kitchen creations but more so because he doesn't like for other people (aka Vance) to be in his kitchen when he's cooking. He also likes to wrestle around with his stuffed animals, daddy, Pa, Vance and well anyone who will play. He also likes to put the blanket over his head and pretend he's a monster. He still loves trains and thinks it's a riot when mommy, Vance and he line up and pretend to be a train. It's a fun age.

-Vance continues to be our dare devil. He has such an extroverted personality. He loves to climb and has just about no fear- unless he's being separated from mommy. He's going through a little bit of separation anxiety.

That's about it for us. Right now we're really feeling fortunate and blessed. We're missing our family and friends but starting to put down roots here.

Build a Bear

So for Christmas Auntie Dana gave the boys "Build-a-Bear" gift certificates. So we took a field trip to the Build-a-Bear workshop. The boys had a really fun time. Joel wanted a monkey and Vance picked out a koala bear. It was a really fun day.