Ty Visits the "PEN"

Some of you might have thought penitentiary, but we meant a sharpie pen. I sure hope that this picture will always be something that we can sit back and laugh at and not something that becomes a reality one day! Here is a great reason why a sharpie pen should NEVER be left out in the open. Tyson wanted to look like daddy so a mustache and goatee were added to his face using the sharpie. I guess it's better that it was used on his face and not on our furniture.

He is definitely always adding a curve ball to our day. This, however, was definitely something we sat back and laughed at. How could you not?

Brother Does Sister's Hair

A few weeks back, while I was putting away laundry in the babies room, Tyson decided to occupy his time, by doing his sister's hair. It was hilarious to watch him turn into a very detailed and very serious hair dresser, making sure NOT to miss a spot, but it was even more funny and amazing to witness Lilah just sitting there as if she was truly enjoying a day at the hair salon. Needless to say, I removed the clips as soon as Ty was done.

I DIG TREASURES!

One of the gifts that we purchased for Tyson, for his birthday, gifts that we purchased was a giant sized excavation adventure filled with Pirate treasure. I was so excited when I placed eyes on this item because it was too perfect for his love for pirates and treasure in general.

Picture 1:

This excavation craft came with protective glasses, to give Ty the "archaeological experience", a stainless steel chisel and nail, to help discover the treasures and a sand based island which was filled with all kinds of exciting things for Tyson to find.

Picture 2:

The Island

Picture 3:

Tyson gets ready to chisel away on the island to uncover the hidden treasures.

Picture 4:

He really enjoyed using the hammer and chisel at first, but he was so anxious to reveal the hidden treasures that he began getting impatient and decided to ONLY use the hammer. This helped to disclose the treasures rather quickly.

Picture 5:

You can see Tyson using the hammer and chisel here. Patience still present.

Picture 6:

However, the first sign of treasure created the impatience AND Ty dropped the chisel and began hammering away.

Picture 7:

Treasure chests, jewels, gold, skulls, crabs, and spiders were inside the sand.

This craft was truly a royal treat. I LOVED watching Ty get into digging into the sand. I was so excited to capture some photos that I didn't really get to sit with Tyson and take our time disclosing what was hidden in the sand. That's my only regret. The sand was pretty messy, but I lined the garage floor with wax paper, so the clean up wasn't as bad as it could have been.

If anyone is interested in this craft or something similar, they have several different types of them at A.C. Moore. Some include: I Dig Dinosaurs, Dig and Play Egyptian Tomb. Be sure to print your 40% off coupon from the website thought because these aren't cheap. I think the original cost was $29.99.

Tyson Attends His Kindergarten Orientation!

Last Wednesday, Tyson was invited to attend Kindergarten orientation. It's so hard to believe all of this is really happening. Tyson was so thrilled. He thinks he's Mr. Big Shot strolling into "Kindergarten!" We were greeted by the PTA president and then lead into an actual kindergarten classroom that was physically going on. Each existing kindergartner was asked to introduce themselves and tell one thing that they like to do. One girls stated, My name is... and I like to tell my mom to clean my room. A little boy said, My name is... and I like to break things. Another little boy said, My name is... and I like to lift weights. Oh how funny. When it was time for Tyson to introduce himself, he said, "Hi. My name is Tyson and I like to play WII.

Tyson and I were able to witness what a typical day in the life of a kindergartner would be like. Mrs. Barrett read the class a book and had them do an art project related to the story. Next up, lunch time. Oh yes... we actually ate in the cafeteria and we actually ate cafeteria food. What a royal treat!!! Can you sense the sarcasm in that?

Enjoy the photos of our almost kindergartner. My how time has flown by.

A Visit From Captain Jack Sparrow.

As time is approaching rapidly, our household is getting prepared for Tyson's 5th birthday party. Tyson's attire is all picked out. He's so excited. The other day however, he said, "Mommy, I need a sword to go with my party outfit." I replied, "You're right, you do. Every pirate needs a sword." I kind of left it alone and then a light bulb went off in my head. I bought Ty a pirate sword as part of his birthday present, but I thought of a better way to present it to him. I'm BIG on allowing Tyson to use his imagination. It's tough to decipher when you are offering too much towards the imaginative story line that is taking place verses when you are considered to be lying to your child. As a Christian, it's difficult, to me, to do anything without second guessing myself, but when it comes to your children I'm even more critical. Anyway, the other night, I grabbed the sword and displayed it on the living room chair after we tucked him in. The next morning, when Ty woke up, I said, "Ty, there is something downstairs waiting on you." He rushed down stairs to find a pirate sword and a personal note from Captain Jack Sparrow. The note read:

"Ahoy There Tyson"

"Me lookin forward to meetin you at yer 5th birthday party!

Yer mommy said ye be dressin up as a pirate!

Every pirate needs a sword ye know?

So, me snuck in yer house last night to leave ye one.

This sword is one of me favorites, so don't break it.

And be sure to keep it away from yer brother and sister.

I give ye mommy and daddy permission to take it away

If ye cannot be respectful with it."

See Ya Real Soon!

Jack Sparrow

Two Wheel Tyson!

After Church yesterday, Jax went down for a long nap. Lilah, Tyson, and I went outside to keep daddy company while he mowed the lawn. I was fed up with starring at the training wheels on Tyson's bicycle, so I said, "Hey Ty, want to learn to ride a 2 wheel bike?" He was so excited and said, "YES!" I immediately took advantage of "no fear" Tyson and removed the training wheels. A friend, a while ago, recommended that I let him learn on grass, so that's exactly what I did. I taught Ty how to ride his bike on the grass FIRST. He was successful at the FIRST shot. I haven't seen a smile from ear to ear like this one in a long time. He was BEYOND proud of himself, as were his mommy and daddy. I recorded him going down our HUGE hill, in our backyard. He was amazing. Now we just have to wait for his birthday to arrive. He will be receiving a "cool" helmet and "radical" knee pads from Poppy and Cee Cee, but for now, he's being forced to wear this Elmo helmet and he's not very happy about it. "Mommy, I ride a 2 wheel bike and I'm wearing an Elmo helmet, knee pads, and elbow pads!" I guess he's got a point. What a BIG milestone!!! Go Tyson, Go!!!!!

AHOY MATEYS!!!!

(Tyson in 2007 for Halloween)

Our little man is about to turn 5 years old. It's so hard to believe. I'm excited to celebrate his special day because lately I feel like the twins are the ones who receive all of the love and all of the attention. Whether it be if we are out in public, by perfect strangers, or surrounded by our family in Christ- Lilah and Jaxon have a big fan club base. It's been a while since I have had the opportunity to update Tyson's blog. There are many exciting updates to report about. First up... A PIRATE PARTY is nearing. I know I say this about every party, but this is a really fun type of party to plan. It's so colorful and the theme takes your mind in all different directions. Take a peak at the adorable invitations I designed, assembled, and hand delivered to each of the guests.

Photo 1: The invite was delivered as shown above.

Photo 2: The inside of the package included gold pirate coins.

Photo 3: A Treasure Map

Photo 4: The Invite: I had a blast creating the verbiage.

Photo 5: I have his invite displayed on my kitchen island.

Twister Fun!

As a parent, you do what you have to do, to create those lasting memories. I thoroughly enjoy introducing my favorite movies, books, and board games to Tyson as he continues to get old enough to watch, listen and play with them. I was at Target the other day and picked up the game TWISTER. Remember that game? The game that twists you together in knots? As if twins don't do that to us already. HA HA. It was fun. A little more difficult in my old age than it was when I was 12. I also like the game because it helps teach Ty his left from his right. Enjoy a few pictures!

Building Strong Families - Devotional #4

About a week or so ago, Tyson and I did our 4th devotional in the greatest devotional book for kids ever called, "52 Fun Family Devotionals".

The focus was on Building Strong Families. The devotionals always reference scripture, obviously, as that's the point of doing the devotional. Learning God's word. This devotional referenced Matthew 7:24-27.

"Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house upon a rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat that house, but it did not fall because it was founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand, and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against the house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it."

As we build our lives, we need to know the importance of the Master Carpenter's construction story. This devotional was used to encourage Tyson to build his life on the foundation of Jesus and his Word.

Equipment: Square gingerbread cookies or graham crackers, "glue" made of confectioner's sugar and water, assorted candies, paper plates, and a Bible.

Exploration: Use the gingerbread cookies or graham crackers and sugar glue, have each family member create a house, tee pee, car, or whatever they want. Encourage them to be creative. Use assorted candies to decorate the creations. (I used the candy bowl from Halloween and Valentine's Day that never seems to disappear). When everyone is done, allow each family member to present their structure and describe it.

Discovery: Read Matthew 7:24-27 and talk about these questions:How is building a gingerbread house similar to building a strong family?

1. What was difficult about building something out of gingerbread? What was easy?
2. Gingerbread creations are made out of cookies and candy. What are homes made out of? What is difficult about building a home?
3. Why is it important for a family to have a strong "foundation"? What foundations would God like us to use for our family?
4. How can each of us help to build our home on a strong foundation?

Prayer: Let family members know that one important foundation is a family prayer. Then take a few minutes to ask family members to share prayer requests they'd like others to pray about.

While building the gingerbread fort, we added to our "quiet" time and sang that song, "The Wise man builds his house upon the ROCK!" We built our fort with an ice cream waffle bowl, and 3 graham crackers. It's all we had left in the house. Tyson made this fort so colorful with all the left over candy we collect over the holidays. He said, "Wow, this fort looks like Candy Land!"

Amazement Square Fun!

Enjoy some video clips from Amazement Square:

1. Darren tries playing basketball in a wheel chair.

2. Darren and Ty play virtual reality soccer.

3-4. Darren and Ty on the zipline.