2015 Holidays

As in past years, we spent Thanksgiving at Babcia and Dziadzia's house.  Grammy and Gdaddy came with the girls and we all enjoyed some delicious food.  Both Katie and Jacob loved eating turkey and potatoes. 

Then on Saturday we went to a Lowe's build clinic where Jacob assembled a Christmas train.  Our little engineer got to hammer some nails and really channeled his inner Uncle Paul. 

We also attended the Christmas parade in town.  The fire trucks were loud so we only stayed long enough to eat all the goldfish crackers we brought.  And then we knew it was time to go home.  We also got a few great shots of Jacob and Katie in front of the big town square tree. 

Christmas was very fun this year.  In the weeks leading up to the big day, Jacob watched the calendar like a hawk and every morning alerted us to the date. He talked about Santa and even brought us some presents from preschool.  For the record mama got a puzzle, dada got a flashlight, and Katie got a lamb! 

Jacob set up a train around the tree and it was beautiful despite the countless derailments and constant track reconfigurations.....it was like the highway projects around middle Tennessee.  Katie was also a big (if not slightly chaotic) helper in her constant decorating and redecorating of the tree.  The lower portion of our tree was beautiful since almost all the ornaments were on approximately 15 branches at the height of an 18 month old.  Also both Katie and Jacob loved GG's white ceramic tree since the 'bulbs' were removable and could be rearranged.  Katie set up her step stool by the tree and spent most of Christmas there.  I am sure that months later we will be finding those tiny bulbs around the house (since Katie would load them into small toy trucks and drive them around).   

On Christmas Eve we went to the Children's Mass and it was standing room only.  We might have been breaking some fire code rules at church!  And we stood right next to Jacob's preschool teacher.  Needless to say he was VERY shy and on his best behavior.  We are hoping to run into her at Mass more often.  Then we went to Babcia and Dziadzia's to start the Christmas Eve festivities.  We arrived and Jacob had the very important job of turning on all the lights - inside and out.  Jacob immediately checked under the tree and was disappointed that Santa had not made it to drop off any presents.  However, after dinner Santa could be heard around the house.  Everyone got a present! 

Christmas Day we opened presents and then traveled to Grammy and Gdaddy's house for more present opening.  Needless to say, there was some assembly required.

We had a wonderful holiday season and then we ushered in 2016 by staying up until 9PM!!!!!!!!

We are looking forward to a wonderful 2016.

School Happenings

School started out well this year.  Jacob is excited to run into his classroom and loves his teachers.  We are told he is a good boy and we have seen that he is gentle with other kids.......we might be singing a different tune with Katie, but she is definitely more spirited.

Jacob came home from school in September and had three band aids on his hand/fingers.  According to him, there was an incident with some bikes on the playground.  One of the band aids came off on its own and there was no sign of an injury, but the other spots were signs of collision.

Here is some of the art or academics that Jacob mastered early on in the school year.  It is clear that Jacob should be in the advanced circle stamping class.  His work is top notch, but he might have trouble getting a job if coloring in the lines is the hiring criteria.
 

Jacob also has a new prayer partner.  The kids go to Mass each Friday and sit with their prayer partners.  Apparently Jacob's prayer partner has shown him how to follow the songs and readings in the book and Jacob loves this new development.  Jacob also knows a few prayers including the Our Father. 

Jacob had a parent-teacher conference and Jacob got glowing remarks for his ability to read and spell.  He definitely made learning to read easy on his parents since he just picked it up seamlessly.  We are hoping he teaches the rest of the Cole clan.  Jacob's penmanship could use a little help so we will be practicing. 

We had a little parental fail in that we missed the deadline to order school pictures so all we have is a proof, but Jacob sure is a photogenic 4 year old!

There was lots of practicing letters, colors, and shapes this year.  Jacob had some other awesome art as well.

One of Jacob's favorites was mixing colors to create a new color.  And of course there was movie day where the kids wore pajamas, ate pizza, and watched Monsters Inc.

Here is our little scholar with the rest of his class at a puppet show and picking out pumpkins!  Jacob is the one facing the puppets on the left  side of the picture and the one sneezing on this pumpkin in the center of the right hand side picture.

Preschool sure is fun.

Katie and Jacob

Jacob and Katie are busy, but mostly they are keeping us busy with all their demands.  Katie is our verbal/vocal little athletic risk taker while Jacob is our more academic, patient (with other kids), builder.

Katie talks all the time!  She walks around the house having pretend telephone conversations....lots of jibberish sprinkled with noises in the affirmative and an "ok bye bye" to wrap it up.  She likes to point and say "this" and will answer questions with an enthusiastic "yes" or a "no".  She is definitely a second child and will eagerly congratulate herself with a hearty "I did it!" 

Katie is also very physical.  She likes climbing on top of things.  As a matter of fact, the sit-n-spin as well as several stools have been temporarily put away due to certain little monkeys climbing or stacking and climbing to potentially arm breaking heights. 

Katie is a collector.  Her toddler hoarding tendencies mean that she has to be carrying something around and usually leaves Babcia's house with an item or five.  She especially likes marbles/bouncy balls or Lego men or small cars/trucks, but don't underestimate the power of a good plush animal (a Mama's arch nemesis).  And so far Katie is not showing much interest in baby dolls, but she does like pretend cooking and eating (very reflective of her real life love of eating).    

Katie is a huge helper and loves to throw things away......we might have lost a remote due to her love of being helpful. Katie's helpful streak extends to her brother, but he doesn't always see her as being so helpful (especially if he is working on building a train track layout or Lego item.  Katie likes to sidle up to Jacob and grab a Lego or toy (especially one that Jacob is playing with) and run for the safety of an adult as Jacob tries to get back his item back.  Luckily Jacob is very gentle with his sister.

And the following pictorial evidence will show that Katie has her Dada wrapped around her little finger.......please note that Katie is sitting in a doll stroller.

Jacob is still his contemplative self.  He has been learning little songs at school and came home doing a rap about the sounds each letter makes.  Dada is allowed to participate in songs, but it is immediately shut down when Mama tries to sing along.  There was also a days of the week song that Jacob jumped into when he noticed that they were printed on the WalMart optometrist's office.  Sounds like PreK is the year of the song.  And every once in a while Jacob comes home with a gem like this.

Jacob has been enjoying Thomas the train and spends hours playing trains.  We have new configurations of track laid out daily and Jacob is very adamant about doing it all himself.....with some ideas from YouTube.  Jacob also loves to build Legos.  While Jacob enjoys building the tracks in free form, he is a by the book builder when it comes to Legos.  Also, Jacob still loves puzzles and reading....we are hoping this academic side wears off on his siblings. 

Zoo Fun

After a fun time at the beach, the Cole family had a wild streak and also went to the ZOOOO!  I guess more activities are the result of getting a new mini (van not cooper).

Right away we spotted TWO little monkeys.

We saw some animals and per usual, Jacob would walk up to an enclosure say "Yup that's a giraffe/bird/elephant" and then keep walking.  The boy doesn't dilly dally.

More important then the animals was the carousel ride.

And of course the train ride. 

And the wobbly bridge located right by the flamingos.  Jacob loved this bridge. 

And then we discovered the playground and decided that our zoo visits will never be the same if Jacob and Kate learn the route to the playground without detouring past at least a few animals.

Beach 2015

The Cole family ventured outside of the state of TN this year!  Grammy and Gdaddy were kind enough to invite us for their annual October trip to the beach.  This would be the inaugural trip for our new mini (van not Cooper).  We left Saturday morning and right out the gate things were iffy because Jacob had a fever.  A fever, but he was in such good spirits that we packed up some meds and decided to go anyway.  At one point we crossed a bridge and Jacob said "that's the Chicago River."  The state of Alabama welcomed us with lots of traffic, but we persevered and made it to the Gulf. 

It was chilly the first two days or so, but soon enough the weather turned and stayed wonderful.  Grammy found a great place for us to enjoy dinner.  Jacob and Katie practiced their football throw.

They stood on a giant chair

And it became very evident that naps are mandatory at the beach. Otherwise one of the 2 smallest Cole children are blurry and crying in every picture.......but the girls always look beautiful.  

Jacob felt good.  He enjoyed the sand and the water, but only in moderation.....meaning 10 minute maximum increments!  Jacob was most excited to carry the sand toys down and destroy any sand shapes that Dada made.

In our spare time we ventured around the grounds.  There was a giant checker and chess set and corn-hole boards that Jacob was awesome at (as long as he was mere inches from the hole).  Maybe this can be added as an Olympic sport?

No one was stung by any jelly fish and Katie enjoyed the condo's playground.  Jacob was a little confused that there were no swings, but Katie loved the slide.  She always had a spark of energy when she knew she would get some playground freedom.  Our little firecracker is also quite the daredevil.  Jacob likes to observe and cautiously approach new things/experiences, but Katie goes all out. 

And the BEST part of being at the beach?  The sun? No.  The sand?  No.  The fresh seafood?  No.  The elevator?  YES!!!!  Jacob mastered the elevator, but was always a little suspicious when someone else got on board and pushed their own button for a floor that wasn't his.  Once he said "18?  Why you push 18?"

There were also some fish in the lobby that we made sure to say hello to as often as possible.  Eleven fish to be exact.....one looked like it was sleeping and luckily we didn't pet any of them.

The sun hasn't been Katie's friend so she made great use of the bathtub.  She is such a precious and feisty girl.  Several people commented that she is so small that they didn't expect her to talk, but she is definitely a communicator.......through words and even by throwing herself on the ground when she needs more emphasis.

Another highlight was the lazy river.  It was on the shaded side of the building so it was more like the arctic river, but Jacob and Dada enjoyed a few rounds.  Katie even got in on the action in a little boat she borrowed from a little boy. 

Of course a few days later Katie started to feel crummy.  We left very early on Thursday morning and drove straight to the doctor where Katie was diagnosed with her first ear infection and a viral cough!  Someday we hope to experience a beach vacation without illness!  Meanwhile, Babcia and Dziadzia were having no fun in sunny Florida.  They missed us terribly......but rarely called. 

Fun Inside

Katie and Jacob love to run in the house and pretty much run the house (if we are being honest).  They get a ride on toy and a push toy and run around in circles shouting.  Sometimes Jacob will even push Katie around on her toy.  Or Katie will push around her babies on the toys.  They sure do bring some excitement to the house.  You can definitely tell there are kids in this house.

We can't get enough of her cuteness.  Katie loves her stuffed animals or anything soft. 

Jacob still loves letters and numbers and has even stuck all his magnetic letters to the fireplace in the living room.  You might also want to watch where you step b/c those Legos sure do hurt your feet.  Jacob is currently very into reading the 'Runaway Tomato', building puzzles, playing Thomas the train, eating apples, and making sure Katie stays in line.  When he sees his little sister getting too close to the top of the stairs or the edge of the driveway, he will grab her leg or arm or head and pull her to safety......Katie is not always thrilled by this.......Katie is never thrilled with her safety monitor brother. 

Jacob also loves to slide on the slides and swings at the church/school playground. 

We tried out some riding toys at the toy store and Katie loved them..........but wasn't thrilled about sharing the seat with Jacob.  She kept trying to push him out.  Luckily Jacob thinks this is hilarious and doesn't mind pushing some of Katie's buttons.....just like a good big brother!!

Nightly Walks

We love to take a nightly walk.  Before the walk, we have to fire off a couple rockets or propeller toys and blow some bubbles. 

Our walk route normally takes us to the new part of the neighborhood where they are still in the process of building out the road.  There is lots of dirt to kick and gravel to climb.  Jacob calls this "the quarry".  One particular house near the quarry has some black rocks in their landscaping and Jacob refers to these as moon rocks.

Katie even gets in on the action at the quarry.  She normally wears pants, but this day was extra casual.

There is a newly built house with a pool near the quarry and we always have to rest there.  It might be a problem when it finally sells.  Where else will be rest and shake the rocks out of our shoes?

Katie rides in the stroller and eats snacks on the way to the quarry and Jacob rides and eats on the way back.  These walks are prime time for spotting birds and rabbits and of course PUPPIES!!!!!!  Katie loves puppies, but she will settle for other animals as well.  She especially enjoys puppy Penne from next door since Penne is very small.  Puppies are known as "arf arf" around our house and a few neighbors have 2 or 3 little arf arfs that Katie loves seeing.  This particular day we saw a kitty.

Hopefully the weather cooperates a little longer so we can keep going on our daily walks.

Back to School

Jacob went to the meet and greet at school and things seemed a little touch and go.  He seemed excited until we got inside and then things went a little downhill.  Jacob's teacher, Mrs. Flowers, and her assistant Ms. Judy, are very nice.  Mrs. Flowers sent a postcard in the week before preschool started and we read it every day.
Here we are on supply drop off day in our awesome rhino shirt and comfy shorts.  Comfort is key with this boy.

We were a little unsure of how things would play out when he actually had to stay all day.  And here we are at Babcia's on the first day of school in our trusty uniform shirt and khaki shorts.  We snack on Cheerios in the car, but not to worry, Babcia makes sure we eat properly before leaving for school.

This year, Jacob is going Monday, Wednesday, and Friday (so one more day then last year), but he is keeping the same hours with a 2PM dismissal.

And surprise, surprise......Jacob LOVES school.  He runs in and knows exactly where to put his stuff and gets right to work.  Mrs. Flowers and Ms. Judy display the perfect amount of enthusiasm to get Jacob excited.  Also, Katie is pretty determined to go with Jacob.

Jacob has not been bringing home nearly as many projects so a couple rain forests may have been spared!!  He has actually talked about school and the kids and the toys he plays with.  Yay for Preschool.  We are just shocked that next year is 5 day a week kindergarten.  That seems like too much!

Family Reunion and More Water Fun

We went to the Cole family reunion held at the Casey Jones Village and Railroad Museum.  We made the mistake of going to play with trains first and Jacob was not happy to be ripped away.  We had to go back after eating and spent a good amount of time enjoying the train tables and of course the ride on toy.  Katie likes anything with wheels.  She loves to get in and out of her Cozy Coupe at Babcia's house.

Katie also loves shoes and will spend much time pulling out shoes and reorganizing.  She is also a huge fan of her butterfly shirt and will show anyone that listens where the butterfly is located.  We are big fans of our little Katie-bug.

Also, Uncle Paul and Aunt Annemarie traveled to Korea and sent back a little outfit for our Katie.  Here she is looking very Asian.

And there was more water!!!!!  Surprise, surprise.