Many of you read my note "Christmas with Toddlers."
We have a couple of big updates:
The other day I posted a note about the boys being completely TERRIBLE!! I mean, the entire day was AWFUL, and quite possibly one of the hardest yet since being a Mommy. I mentioned something about "Santa watching" again since that seemed to help for Jacob several days earlier. Caleb announces to me, "Santa not watching, Mommy." I tell him, "Uh, yeah, Caleb, HE IS watching and he knows that you are not minding your Mommy right now!" Caleb gave me a very seriously look, which, as he often does, shows his little "gears turning" so to speak. He ran to his bedroom window were the previously mentioned inflatable Santa "rests" during the day. He reports to me, "No, Mommy; Santa no watching; Santa night-night right now!!" So come to find out, he realized that he could be naughty all day because Santa was not inflated, therefore "Santa night-night!" UGH - what a stinker!!
That night, Daddy came home from work and I told him all about what had happened during the day. Jon called Santa to request that the twins be temporarily added to the "naughty" list, possibly being changed at a later time pending their behavior. Jacob got very serious after Jon's "phone call," requesting that Jon then "call Jesus!"
Hmmm... was he trying to go above Santa's head? Wanting to ask for forgiveness?! We aren't too sure. It was one of those moments that I was doing everything I could to keep my calm, serious face. His blue eyes were again HUGE, and I didn't want to bust out laughing during his obvious moment of distress.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Christmas with Toddlers
The twins are really getting into Christmas this year! They actually seem to understand a lot of what's going on. Many of their comments are cracking us up, so I through I would share the laughs.
Last night at dinner, Jacob was really being a "toot," whining about everything and not wanting to eat. Finally Jon said "Jacob, that is enough - if you scream one more time you are going to time out!!" He still proceeded to scream, so Jon stood up - still no reaction from Jacob. Caleb's mouth dropped open and he said "Jacob, Santa is watching you!!!" Jacob immediately stopped crying. His big blue eyes became huge, and he instantly turned back into a good boy. He ate all of the rest of his dinner quietly, and then asked very nicely for yogurt. It was a complete 180.
Since that moment, I cannot tell you have many times I have heard them remind each other, "Santa's watchin', Bubba!"
This morning the utility room door was open, and Caleb saw the vacuum cleaner. He asked to have it, and I told him no, that it was Mommy's. He looked at me very seriously, as if he was soaking in what I had said. He then said, "I be back," as he ran off to his bedroom. I tip toed behind him to see what in the world he was doing. There little Caleb stood, looking out his window with the sweetest smile. (Note: We have an inflatable Santa just outside the twins' bedroom window.) "Santa, I want a vacuuume pweesee?!" He turned to retreat back to the living room, but then turned back towards the window and shouted "thank you, Santa!"
Tonight in the play room we had another great instance. Jacob got really wound up - which he does often. He wanted to wrestle and tackle Caleb, but Caleb kept telling him no. After some time, Caleb got on one of the toy phones and spoke into it: "Hi, Santa. I be good. But Jay-Jay be BAD!" He finished his sentence with a huge "Caleb giggle!"
The inflatable Santa mentioned above has been quite a source of entertainment for our guys. They have spent much time admiring him, as well as our two deer, other lights, and candy canes lining the drive. We have our Christmas lights sat on a timer so that they come on at dark, and remain on for 6 hours. Without power, Santa of course collapses. Because of this, they are now convinced that Santa is nocturnal. :-) The second day we had the lights in our yard, the boys opened their blinds and were horrified to see Santa collapsed! The twins kept asking "Mommy, Santa ok? He ok, Momma?!?!" I told him that Santa was just resting. So, they now report that "Santa asleep all day, but he get up after dark!" They periodically check on him and each time tell him, "Night-night, Santa."
The coolest thing, however, is that when we ask them "what is Christmas," they both reply "it Jesusess burfhday!" :-)
A little unrelated, but still very funny - Gabe sneezed the other day. (The twins have both gotten really good at saying "Bless You" when someone sneezes, as well as "Scuse me" when they burp - but that's another story!) Nobody said anything to Gabe, so I asked, "Boys, what do you say when someone sneezes?" I got completely blank looks. You could have heard crickets chirping. So, I ask again. At this point I think Caleb is on to what I want him to say, but instead gave me his infamous sly, impish little Caleb grin (this should have been my first clue that he was planning to say something funny). I ask, "Caleb, what do Mommy and Daddy say to you when you sneeze?" *big smarty pants grin* “Mommy say - cover your mouth, Cay-Cay!”
It's never a dull moment around here!
Last night at dinner, Jacob was really being a "toot," whining about everything and not wanting to eat. Finally Jon said "Jacob, that is enough - if you scream one more time you are going to time out!!" He still proceeded to scream, so Jon stood up - still no reaction from Jacob. Caleb's mouth dropped open and he said "Jacob, Santa is watching you!!!" Jacob immediately stopped crying. His big blue eyes became huge, and he instantly turned back into a good boy. He ate all of the rest of his dinner quietly, and then asked very nicely for yogurt. It was a complete 180.
Since that moment, I cannot tell you have many times I have heard them remind each other, "Santa's watchin', Bubba!"
This morning the utility room door was open, and Caleb saw the vacuum cleaner. He asked to have it, and I told him no, that it was Mommy's. He looked at me very seriously, as if he was soaking in what I had said. He then said, "I be back," as he ran off to his bedroom. I tip toed behind him to see what in the world he was doing. There little Caleb stood, looking out his window with the sweetest smile. (Note: We have an inflatable Santa just outside the twins' bedroom window.) "Santa, I want a vacuuume pweesee?!" He turned to retreat back to the living room, but then turned back towards the window and shouted "thank you, Santa!"
Tonight in the play room we had another great instance. Jacob got really wound up - which he does often. He wanted to wrestle and tackle Caleb, but Caleb kept telling him no. After some time, Caleb got on one of the toy phones and spoke into it: "Hi, Santa. I be good. But Jay-Jay be BAD!" He finished his sentence with a huge "Caleb giggle!"
The inflatable Santa mentioned above has been quite a source of entertainment for our guys. They have spent much time admiring him, as well as our two deer, other lights, and candy canes lining the drive. We have our Christmas lights sat on a timer so that they come on at dark, and remain on for 6 hours. Without power, Santa of course collapses. Because of this, they are now convinced that Santa is nocturnal. :-) The second day we had the lights in our yard, the boys opened their blinds and were horrified to see Santa collapsed! The twins kept asking "Mommy, Santa ok? He ok, Momma?!?!" I told him that Santa was just resting. So, they now report that "Santa asleep all day, but he get up after dark!" They periodically check on him and each time tell him, "Night-night, Santa."
The coolest thing, however, is that when we ask them "what is Christmas," they both reply "it Jesusess burfhday!" :-)
A little unrelated, but still very funny - Gabe sneezed the other day. (The twins have both gotten really good at saying "Bless You" when someone sneezes, as well as "Scuse me" when they burp - but that's another story!) Nobody said anything to Gabe, so I asked, "Boys, what do you say when someone sneezes?" I got completely blank looks. You could have heard crickets chirping. So, I ask again. At this point I think Caleb is on to what I want him to say, but instead gave me his infamous sly, impish little Caleb grin (this should have been my first clue that he was planning to say something funny). I ask, "Caleb, what do Mommy and Daddy say to you when you sneeze?" *big smarty pants grin* “Mommy say - cover your mouth, Cay-Cay!”
It's never a dull moment around here!
Friday, October 30, 2009
Halloween Meal!
Since tomorrow will be a busy day for us, the boys had their fun food today! (Y'all know I have to go all crazy on holidays!) As always, everything was holiday related and semi healthy. I am passing this on now in case any one wants to copy it for tomorrow.
Breakfast: Pumpkin Patch Oatmeal
I made a pot of oatmeal (3 servings), and added three tablespoons of pureed pumpkin, about a tablespoon (or a little less) of smart balance margarine, some cinnamon, and a little brown sugar. In their bowls, I put sliced bananas around the edge and one "candy corn" pumpkin in the middle. (I mean, it IS Halloween - we can get away with just a touch of candy for breakfast, right?!)
Results: Jacob and Caleb ate all of theirs, and Caleb (my big breakfast eater) even had seconds. They all asked for seconds on the pumpkin too - nice try, boys, but not so much. ;-)
Lunch:
Pumpkin Pizzas
I halved 2 Oroweat Whole Grain and Flax Omega-3 English Muffins, spread a little pizza sauce over the top of each, added some cheese, covered the top with sliced up pepperonis and a little more cheese (to hold them in place), and placed a small triangle of green bell pepper to the top. I then baked at 400 degrees for 5 minutes. While they were baking, I cut a cheese slice into 12 little triangles, and 4 smiles. After 5 minutes, I turned off the oven, put the cheese "smiles" on the pizzas, and baked for about 2 more minutes. (See picture below)
We also had...
Pumpkin Mac N Cheese - Kraft has a "Halloween shapes" boxed mac and cheese. I made this as per the directions, but substituted 1/2 pureed pumpkin in place of the butter.
And...
Pumpkin Hummus!
Ingredients:
1 can (15.5 oz.) chickpeas or garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
3/4 cup LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon water
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt or more to taste
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Instructions:
PLACE chickpeas, pumpkin, lemon juice, water, garlic, salt and pepper into food processor; cover. Blend for 1 minute or until smooth. Additional water, a teaspoon at a time, can be added if a smoother consistency is desired
Results: Jacob went nuts! He ate every bite of everything, giggling the whole time, and requested more hummus. Gabe ate almost a whole pizza himself, had about a tablespoon of hummus, and had THIRDS on the pumpkin mac and cheese! Caleb... well, little Caleb saw everything and got too wound up to eat. He was belly laughing like crazy, and started acting out a little. He quickly calmed down, got sweet, and ate everything when he saw Jacob and Gabe getting dessert though...
Dessert was pumpkin muffins!
We love pumpkin muffins!! I make these all year, and always have them in our freezer.
Combine well 1 box of spice cake mix, 1 can of pumpkin, and 3/4 cup natural apple sauce and bake at 350 for about 30 minutes for regular sized muffins or about 20 minutes for mini muffins. Super easy. But, of course, today I added cream cheese frosting and a candy corn on top of each mini muffin! :-)
(These muffins freeze well. Just take out of the freezer and microwave for 1 minute. The boys love mornings when I am running behind, as we have a pumpkin muffins, bananas, and milk for breakfast!)
We ended up not eating the mummy cookies today, as their were already too wound up. I cannot take credit for them, as they were made by a mom of one of the twins' classmates. Aren't they cute though? (milano cookie, drizzled with white frosting, and mini M&M's for eyes)
I hope someone takes this idea for tomorrow! It was all really good, and the boys loved it!
My only concern...
Do you think it is possible to consume TOO MUCH Vitamin A in one day?! Sheesh! haha
Breakfast: Pumpkin Patch Oatmeal
I made a pot of oatmeal (3 servings), and added three tablespoons of pureed pumpkin, about a tablespoon (or a little less) of smart balance margarine, some cinnamon, and a little brown sugar. In their bowls, I put sliced bananas around the edge and one "candy corn" pumpkin in the middle. (I mean, it IS Halloween - we can get away with just a touch of candy for breakfast, right?!)
Results: Jacob and Caleb ate all of theirs, and Caleb (my big breakfast eater) even had seconds. They all asked for seconds on the pumpkin too - nice try, boys, but not so much. ;-)
Lunch:
Pumpkin Pizzas
I halved 2 Oroweat Whole Grain and Flax Omega-3 English Muffins, spread a little pizza sauce over the top of each, added some cheese, covered the top with sliced up pepperonis and a little more cheese (to hold them in place), and placed a small triangle of green bell pepper to the top. I then baked at 400 degrees for 5 minutes. While they were baking, I cut a cheese slice into 12 little triangles, and 4 smiles. After 5 minutes, I turned off the oven, put the cheese "smiles" on the pizzas, and baked for about 2 more minutes. (See picture below)
We also had...
Pumpkin Mac N Cheese - Kraft has a "Halloween shapes" boxed mac and cheese. I made this as per the directions, but substituted 1/2 pureed pumpkin in place of the butter.
And...
Pumpkin Hummus!
Ingredients:
1 can (15.5 oz.) chickpeas or garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
3/4 cup LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon water
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt or more to taste
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Instructions:
PLACE chickpeas, pumpkin, lemon juice, water, garlic, salt and pepper into food processor; cover. Blend for 1 minute or until smooth. Additional water, a teaspoon at a time, can be added if a smoother consistency is desired
Results: Jacob went nuts! He ate every bite of everything, giggling the whole time, and requested more hummus. Gabe ate almost a whole pizza himself, had about a tablespoon of hummus, and had THIRDS on the pumpkin mac and cheese! Caleb... well, little Caleb saw everything and got too wound up to eat. He was belly laughing like crazy, and started acting out a little. He quickly calmed down, got sweet, and ate everything when he saw Jacob and Gabe getting dessert though...
Dessert was pumpkin muffins!
We love pumpkin muffins!! I make these all year, and always have them in our freezer.
Combine well 1 box of spice cake mix, 1 can of pumpkin, and 3/4 cup natural apple sauce and bake at 350 for about 30 minutes for regular sized muffins or about 20 minutes for mini muffins. Super easy. But, of course, today I added cream cheese frosting and a candy corn on top of each mini muffin! :-)
(These muffins freeze well. Just take out of the freezer and microwave for 1 minute. The boys love mornings when I am running behind, as we have a pumpkin muffins, bananas, and milk for breakfast!)
We ended up not eating the mummy cookies today, as their were already too wound up. I cannot take credit for them, as they were made by a mom of one of the twins' classmates. Aren't they cute though? (milano cookie, drizzled with white frosting, and mini M&M's for eyes)
I hope someone takes this idea for tomorrow! It was all really good, and the boys loved it!
My only concern...
Do you think it is possible to consume TOO MUCH Vitamin A in one day?! Sheesh! haha
Saturday, September 5, 2009
I AM THE 12th MAN!!
Most of you who frequent our blog know the tradition of the 12th Man. For those of you who do not, here is a great link that discusses the significance. We have taken 12th Man photos on the boys for three years now. Here are all of the so that you can compare throughout the years...
JACOB ALAN
2007
2008
2009
.jpg)
CALEB LUKE
2007
2008
2009
GABRIEL "GABE" ELISHA
2008
2009
Also be sure to check out the last post for some of the outtakes and other fun shots of the first day of college football at the Seastrunk Casa!
JACOB ALAN
2007
2008
2009
.jpg)
CALEB LUKE
2007
2008
2009
GABRIEL "GABE" ELISHA
2008
2009
Also be sure to check out the last post for some of the outtakes and other fun shots of the first day of college football at the Seastrunk Casa!
College Football Has Begun!
Today was a lot like Christmas morning around the Seastrunk House... college football has begun! It was an exciting day, and the boys were all pretty good while we watched bits and pieces of several games. We took our yearly 12th Man photos, and Jon is currently editing them now. But until then, I thought I would include some of the "outtake" photos. Enjoy! More to come soon...
Jacob put his boots on by himself - that was NOT our idea.
Doesn't Caleb always look like he is up to something?!
Jon had to get in on the fun too!
"Face mask, #12, Gabriel Seastrunk, 15 yard penalty..."
What a GREAT shot of all of the boys!!
Head to head with Momma...
... and Momma got SACKED!
Gabe actually does have a good arm!
Jacob put his boots on by himself - that was NOT our idea.
Doesn't Caleb always look like he is up to something?!
Jon had to get in on the fun too!
"Face mask, #12, Gabriel Seastrunk, 15 yard penalty..."
What a GREAT shot of all of the boys!!
Head to head with Momma...
... and Momma got SACKED!
Gabe actually does have a good arm!
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Gabe is ONE!
On August 18th, Gabriel turned one year old!
We had a small "party" for him at our house with our family, my parents, and Jon's Dad and Gran.
We had a great dinner of Spaghetti Casserole (one of Gabe's favorites) and Sesame Street cake (which was a big hit by all of the boys).
He was also a pro at opening his gifts!
At this age, even a small party is enough to wear a little guy out...
... and perhaps a big guy too!
Continuing his trend of being a real trooper, Gabe is completely off of a bottle and “pas-pas” (pacifier). He loves giving HIMSELF whole milk from his sippy cup – just like his big brothers. He also will not allow us to feed him, but would rather do it himself.
His vocabulary is much more advanced than the twins were at his age, however with think a lot of that has to do with him being exposed to me working with the twins are their speech due to their mild delay (which is much improved, by the way). He is quite a social butterfly, waving and saying "bye-bye" to everyone we pass. He also shocks us by repeating a lot of words we say - ALREADY!
Gabe had his one year check up appointment on August 19th, and is wonderfully healthy! He is still on the smaller end of the growth chart, but is consistent with his previous trends (so we are not at all worried).
He was 29 1/4 inches, which puts him around the 30th percent for height; and 20 pounds, 11 ounces, which puts him around the 20th percent for weight.
He eats like crazy, especially Italian food and Hummus! When he really likes something, he will get a big grin and say "mmmmm..."
This last picture of Gabe is of him in his Daddy's first rocking chair.
We had a small "party" for him at our house with our family, my parents, and Jon's Dad and Gran.
We had a great dinner of Spaghetti Casserole (one of Gabe's favorites) and Sesame Street cake (which was a big hit by all of the boys).
He was also a pro at opening his gifts!
At this age, even a small party is enough to wear a little guy out...
... and perhaps a big guy too!
Continuing his trend of being a real trooper, Gabe is completely off of a bottle and “pas-pas” (pacifier). He loves giving HIMSELF whole milk from his sippy cup – just like his big brothers. He also will not allow us to feed him, but would rather do it himself.
His vocabulary is much more advanced than the twins were at his age, however with think a lot of that has to do with him being exposed to me working with the twins are their speech due to their mild delay (which is much improved, by the way). He is quite a social butterfly, waving and saying "bye-bye" to everyone we pass. He also shocks us by repeating a lot of words we say - ALREADY!
Gabe had his one year check up appointment on August 19th, and is wonderfully healthy! He is still on the smaller end of the growth chart, but is consistent with his previous trends (so we are not at all worried).
He was 29 1/4 inches, which puts him around the 30th percent for height; and 20 pounds, 11 ounces, which puts him around the 20th percent for weight.
He eats like crazy, especially Italian food and Hummus! When he really likes something, he will get a big grin and say "mmmmm..."
This last picture of Gabe is of him in his Daddy's first rocking chair.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
If you can't say anything nice...
This blog has been pretty quiet lately. Since about March until July, not a lot had gone our way. I guess I have just not wanted to be a downer. Don't get me wrong, things could definitely be a lot worse, but let's not even THINK about that!!! Jon and I have agreed that March of this year until the last several weeks or so had been the most rotten time of either of our lives. No kidding. We are all still alive and mostly well, but one little thing after the other was going wrong.
Jon has said that it is like the "Perfect Storm" around our house. In addition to nothing really going right, we also have three toddlers in our house - two who are in the midst of the terrible twos, AND Jon has been working crazy long hours. That combination is not good!
So, just to name a few crazy things:
We had almost baseball sized (2 1/4 in) hail, which did a number on our roof and vehicles (mostly Jon's truck)
Our next door neighbor's house caught fire, scarily close to our house (this happened in May, and they are still out almost every day restoring the house)
Our microwave broke
Our bathroom toilet broke
Another hail storm came through, doing a little more damage
Both bathroom sinks broke (Jon and his dad had to replace two of the sinks)
I fell and badly hurt my left knee (this was in June - it is still is visibly bruised and very tender to the touch. I am *thinking about* going to the doctor for it since it WAS two months ago now!)
Our 20 year old Bradford Pear tree died, and we had to pay someone to come out and remove it and plant a new tree
I broke my right "baby" toe!
Jon's grandmother had to have a hospital stay
I was rear-ended, and therefore had to deal with insurance companies, auto repair companies, set up a rental car (by the way, it is NOT an easy task to track down a van/mini-van during the summer while lots of family are taking road trips), and see the chiropractor three times a week
We also completely potty trained two boys - including night time - during all of this.
This is not mentioning the day-to-day drama of having three BOYS (and they are ALL BOY!) under the age of three!
So, yeah, I have just mostly kept quiet. In addition, I just haven’t had much down time to blog. We are all doing much better now - thank you God. Jacob and Caleb are getting a little easier *some days*, and Gabe has made it to ONE year. The twins have started going to a preschool program Monday and Wednesday from 9:00 – 2:00. This gives me time with one baby - which I am finding is a piece of cake in comparison! Perhaps with things somewhat slowing down, I can update more often. I have said that in the past, however, so I am not making any promises!
More to come on our day to day adventures…
Jon has said that it is like the "Perfect Storm" around our house. In addition to nothing really going right, we also have three toddlers in our house - two who are in the midst of the terrible twos, AND Jon has been working crazy long hours. That combination is not good!
So, just to name a few crazy things:
We had almost baseball sized (2 1/4 in) hail, which did a number on our roof and vehicles (mostly Jon's truck)
Our next door neighbor's house caught fire, scarily close to our house (this happened in May, and they are still out almost every day restoring the house)
Our microwave broke
Our bathroom toilet broke
Another hail storm came through, doing a little more damage
Both bathroom sinks broke (Jon and his dad had to replace two of the sinks)
I fell and badly hurt my left knee (this was in June - it is still is visibly bruised and very tender to the touch. I am *thinking about* going to the doctor for it since it WAS two months ago now!)
Our 20 year old Bradford Pear tree died, and we had to pay someone to come out and remove it and plant a new tree
I broke my right "baby" toe!
Jon's grandmother had to have a hospital stay
I was rear-ended, and therefore had to deal with insurance companies, auto repair companies, set up a rental car (by the way, it is NOT an easy task to track down a van/mini-van during the summer while lots of family are taking road trips), and see the chiropractor three times a week
We also completely potty trained two boys - including night time - during all of this.
This is not mentioning the day-to-day drama of having three BOYS (and they are ALL BOY!) under the age of three!
So, yeah, I have just mostly kept quiet. In addition, I just haven’t had much down time to blog. We are all doing much better now - thank you God. Jacob and Caleb are getting a little easier *some days*, and Gabe has made it to ONE year. The twins have started going to a preschool program Monday and Wednesday from 9:00 – 2:00. This gives me time with one baby - which I am finding is a piece of cake in comparison! Perhaps with things somewhat slowing down, I can update more often. I have said that in the past, however, so I am not making any promises!
More to come on our day to day adventures…
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