Christmas Eve

Since having the boys we've settled into a nice little routine on Christmas Eve. The morning starts with us making Cookies for Santa! I love choosing one cookie that I think the boys can help with in some way. This year was all about Santa (and his suit)! The cookies were very easy to decorate and the boys loved eating them! After cookies I prepare the dishes that we'll eat for brunch on Christmas morning. This usually takes a few hours. Then it's time to get dolled up for a party at the Suhar home! I was so nervous that the boys were going to touch absolutely everything in their house because it is always filled with beautiful decorations. Much to our surprise the boys did great! They hardly messed with anything that shouldn't be touched. Thank goodness for Jackson's toys...they kept Hudson occupied for hours, and Bryce loved arranging the DVD's in their drawers (surprise, surprise, right?!). Bryce made himself at home, requesting to take his shirt off half way through the evening, and even drank from a cup like a big boy for the first time! We got home from the party around 11:30 and sprinkled oats and glitter on the lawn so that Santa's reindeer could find our home and have a snack! This was the first year for the reindeer food and the boys were so excited about it...we'll definitely continue that tradition! Finally getting kiddos in jammies and tucked into bed, it was time to "set up"!...

Instant smile!

Yep! That's Woody IN a potty seat! Bryce drove him around the kitchen, sound effects and all, before parking him in the doorway leading into the living room. While cooking dinner I couldn't help but smile to myself at the sight!

Our holiday cheer...

I must admit that I was terrible this year! I was so disorganized, waited until the last second to wrap gifts, and was just an over all hot mess! I vow to plan ahead and to have a more enjoyable holiday season next year! So, in a nut shell, here are a few ways we enjoyed December...

We baked Christmas cookies with Kelly! For the most part the boys ran around shirtless and ate numerous candy "cans". They did help unwrap hershey cookies towards the end of the day; however, they ate all of the ones that they could! Bryce was such a clown...we would throw out his arms almost as if to say "it wasn't me!" when he got busted stealing candy, lol!

We ALL went to Hudson's Christmas party at school! Noni brought the boys and Daddy and I left work to meet her there. It was only from 3-4pm, but it was fun to watch the kids interact together. Bryce made himself right at home! Hudson, our lil' angel, surprised us when he got frustrated decorating his ornament. Ms. Mary Ann shared with us that craft time is not his favorite. We were all very surprised by this! She also shared that he loves to sit at the table when they read and count...she also expressed how intelligent she thinks he is (we were not surprised by that ;))!

We made Santa hand print ornaments! I loved our snowmen ornaments that we made last year so much that I thought it would be great to create new ones every year! Hudson was pretty excited to make them, while Bryce was not so sure at first. I absolutely love how they turned out and I know I will treasure them more and more each Christmas!

Hudson's First Christmas Program

Family Pictures

:)

Kalahari

So Thankful

Twas the night before Thanksgiving so we pulled out the couch bed to watch some TV together. The boys loved doing this last year so I'd love to carry on this little tradition as long as they'll let me. With the boys being 2 and 3 everything is a challenge! One boy jumping on the bed, the other crawling underneath...needless to say there was little TV watching, but lots of fun none the less!

Thanksgiving started at home by watching the Macy's parade. The boys were intermittently interested...certain floats grabbed their attention. After the parade we went to G'Pa's for turkey and family! We took a gingerbread cookie decorating kit to keep them occupied (which lasted 10 minutes) but they sure loved the cookies! The boys are constantly moving and exploring. I couldn't help but think how fast these years will fly and soon they'll be ignoring us and playing their handheld video games! So, even though they're always getting into something, I am thankful for how precious, sweet, and amazing my lil ones are!

I just love this little guy!

He's silly. He's spunky. He's dramatic. He's hilarious. He's sweet. He's a lovable, huggable perfect little brother, our baby boy! Bryce is drawn to "things" in place of his toys. He usually grabs a bucket, a DVD, a box of crackers (or two) or even a can of cooking spray for his afternoon naps and for a car ride! During the day, if he's feeling a little sleepy, he'll lay down in mommy's bed for 10 minutes and reappear once he's refreshed! His blankie and binky are a must have. They travel with him everywhere. Sometimes it's even a struggle to get his blankie long enough to wash! Bryce rocks himself, sometimes like a crazy man...that's his signature comfort move! Every night when daddy and I check on B, I have to say "I just love this little guy!" because I do! I could just squeeze him, especially when he's sleeping so sweetly!

Lego Kids Fest

So much fun, so little time...to blog! We've been keeping busy around here having lots of fun together. A few weeks ago Daddy found the Lego Kids Fest at the IX Center in Cleveland. Since we just dressed as legos for Halloween it was a must do! Hudson was in a mood! Every so often he decides that he wants to be a bad boy! This was one of those days! He purposely did everything he could to misbehave! Thankfully for us the boys seem to be in opposite moods most of the time so we only had one cranky boy to deal with :) Bryce wanted to ride the huge ferris wheel so badly, but covered his face during most of the ride! He's so funny...he's so adventurous, but also the biggest chicken! The biggest hit of the day was the vacuum. By far both boys favorite part! Note to self...wait a couple of years until the next Lego Fest. The boys were too little to sit and build with them.

Mary Had a Gas Car

Take 1

Take 2
Take 15
Love, love, love that Hudson calls Merry Madagascar "Mary Had a Gas Car"!

Polar Bear Fox

To say that Hudson loves animals would be an understatement! The animal encyclopedia is his favorite book in the house and he looks at it all of the time. We always have to tell him what each animal eats and where they live. The food chain is not something that phases him! I was so impressed when he landed on this particular page and said this is a "polar bear fox". I'm surprised he even knew it was a fox, but to relate it to a polar bear when it is in fact an Arctic fox is genius :)

I wanna be bad (Part 2):

Last weekend Hudson had Cocoa Puffs for breakfast (as seen on his face!). He also had a glass of milk to drink. He's been drinking like a big boy without a lid or straw like the kids do in school. He's always so careful and does a great job. On this particular day, either by accident or by bad boy (I'm not sure which), the milk ended up all over the table. That's okay. The mess I can clean; however, as I was cleaning up the floor bad boy decided to rub his hands through the milk. I asked him to stop but he kept doing it anyway. So, I asked "do you want to go to your room?" and he said "YES. Yes, I do. Get me down so I can go to my room!". Wow! So off to his room he went. After 10 minutes I went to check on him. Hudson closed himself in his bedroom and when I opened his door he was sitting in his laundry basket playing with his shark. At this point I thought I would "talk" to him about his behavior. I asked him if he wanted to come out, but NOPE, he said he wanted to stay in his room because he's bad! So, in his room he stayed!

I wanna be bad (Part 1):

These faces just say it all!! Hudson's new "thing" is that he wants to be a bad boy. It's very hard to discipline a boy who is trying to be bad. Seriously, getting in trouble is the goal! I must admit while it can be frustrating at times, Hudson is just too sweet to be bad! His back talk is what really gets him in trouble the most. His back talk usually consists of him repeating what you just said but with a "NO or I don't want to..." in front of it. Ex. Mommy: Hudson, please get your coat. Hudson: I don't want to get my coat. Mommy: Okay, Hudson. But it's cold outside. Hudson: It's not cold outside...you get the picture :)

Boys will be Boys!

I love these bear jammies! They look so warm, soft, and cozy! B picked them out at Kohl's a couple of weeks ago (when Hudson was being difficult and didn't want any jammies, lol)! Since B was so excited about his we got Hudson the coordinating set! They look so adorable when they wear them at the same time! Yes, it's the little things that make me happy ;)...

Playtime sure is when fun when you have a friend/brother so close in age! The boys have discovered that they can turn the couch into a sliding board...of course they have to wrestle too! Hudson's idea of playing with Bryce always involved Hudson holding Bryce down or laying on top of him. Bryce hates this but doesn't stick up for himself...yet! We always have to "remove" Hudson from B's body and then they pick up right where they left off! Hudson's usually laughing hysterically and B's usually the silly one when they play. Bryce will fall (on purpose) and rub his "bee-boo's" for a good laugh!

Busted

Guess who has the biggest sweet tooth of them all?!

Brick-or-Treat

Although we dreamed up this little of idea of dressing as a Lego family for Halloween months ago I procrastinated and did not finish the costumes until Sunday night! Since I'm not a seamstress, wrapping boxes and gluing on circles is my best attempt at homemade! I even added little circles to the boys' treat bags so that they were Legos too! I must admit the Legos turned out adorable! I made Bryce's first and it was cute, Hudson's second and it was cuter, Daddy's third...you get the picture...the more Legos we added the cuter it looked! We got lots of compliments as we all walked down the street together. It was a bit difficult to bend over or to walk up steps, but we all managed and even got a few chuckles out of it! Since I waited until the last minute to make our costumes I didn't have a lot of time to try different methods for gluing on our pegs. I used hot glue which didn't stick very well and everyone was losing their pegs throughout the night. Noni's last house thought she was a...box (more chuckles!) Hudson chose all of our colors for us and he never changed him mind! We always remained the color he "assigned" us. This year was a ton of fun. Bryce wore his costume like a champ up until the very end. It was cold. He fell. Game over! I had to take my box off so that I could hold Bryce (who's box also had to be removed). Daddy hobbled back to our house in his box carrying our two boxes...insert chuckles ;). Once we got home we had lasagna for dinner with Noni and Papa who trick-or-treat with us every year! We had a blast and I'm already dreaming up family costumes for next year!

Happy Birthday, Grandma

The Elsbury's came down and the boys and I went to Aunt Deb's house to celebrate Grandma's birthday! I think she was just so excited to see all of the kids! They all played and we had lunch and yummy cupcakes! The boys had the best time playing in Lucy's dog cage! Bryce even asked Grandma if she wanted to get in and play :) Of course the day was not complete until something got broken!! That would be B...he pushed over Grandma's ceramic Halloween decoration. That's the signal that's it's time to go home and take a nap! Both Hudson and Bryce were sleeping before I got off of Aunt Deb's street! Happy Birthday, Grandma! Hope you had a great day!

Boo at the Zoo

This year our friend Sharon made the boys Mario and Luigi costumes to wear to Boo at the Zoo! Hudson loves costumes and didn't want to take his off. Bryce hates clothes of any kind so he barely kept his outfit on long enough for me to snap a quick picture! You'll see he's pouting in most of the pictures!

Grace joined us for Boo at the Zoo this year dressed as a monster from Monster High! The kids enjoyed the Monster Mash dance party; Bryce definitely busted a few moves. They also enjoyed the Magic Show! Most of all, they enjoyed cotton candy and pretzels!

Two Boy Band

The other night while Bryce was banging on the drum Hudson said "hmmm...something's missing". I asked him what was missing and he replied "a symbol!". After I explained to Hudson that we don't have a symbol, he quickly exclaimed "I know. I'll get the tuba!". Away he ran and came back with a "tuba"! So creative!! Hudson went and got the cake stand that I made for their birthday party. And away they played!

Bake Me a Cake

The boys and I wanted to surprise Noni with a beautiful birthday cake on her actual birthday to make her day more special. The boys were so excited and I let them help every step of the way! Hudson chose the bundt pan and then we were ready to get started. We placed two chairs next the the counter and they each took turns adding the ingredients. Hudson especially liked helping Mommy with the mixer; B on the other hand was afraid of it! Once the cake was in the oven it was bathtime for the boys. The agreed to the bath since they knew we would ice the cake once they got out! I did let them ice the cake; however, I had to take over because they were cutting the cake. B enjoyed eating the icing while I finished. They both did a great job adding sprinkles and M&M's! The most beautiful birthday cake was created for the most special Noni! Happy Birthday, Non! We all love you!

Bucca Di Beppo

The family met at Station Square in Pittsburgh to celebrate Noni's birthday with dinner at Bucca Di Beppo. Although the evening began a little stressful with a traffic jam that left us all rushing and a half hour late for our dinner reservations, we had such a fun evening together! Bucca is a great Italian family style restaurant that everyone seemed to enjoy. After dinner, the kids were very excited to play by the fountain, and I must say it was absolutely beautiful! Once we were all chilly we headed inside the shops. The kids took a silly picture in the photo booth, rode the train, and even tried to ride the carousel (which ate our quarters!). With one last stop by the fountain it was time to go home with happy kids and happy memories! It was great celebrating Noni who is so helpful and special to each and every one of us!

Columbus Day

Since Monday was Columbus Day I had the day off from work, sooooo I was excited to get to pick Hudson up from school. This is usually Noni's task, and she always calls with great updates, but it was nice to sneak in and "spy" for myself! Bryce was excited to get his brother as well. He kept saying "Mommy's car...Hudson school". B definitely knew where he was going. He walked right up to the door and once we entered the school he even heard Hudson's voice. We could tell from Hudson's "roooar" (that we heard in the hallway) that the kids were in the restroom rather than the classroom. I stood outside the restroom door and heard Ms. Mary Ann discipline the boys. When they came out Hudson was the leader! The brothers greeted each other with a sweet, big hug! It's amazing how Bryce now walks "two on the blue" like the other kids. When we left the school I asked Hudson what he doing in the restroom, and he responded "I was just being a lion!".

Pumpkins and Donuts, Oh My!

Last Saturday was gorgeous! We couldn't have asked for a more perfect fall day. We went to White House for apples, pumpkins, and donuts...and so did every other family in northeast Ohio! Hudson & Bryce were most excited about the donuts! Hudson just had to carry the box from the bakery and didn't even want to give it up to pay for them! After the boys enjoyed their yummy snack we headed to the petting zoo. This is the first time that Hudson was willing to pet the animals. Bryce wanted to look, but not too closely and definitely no touching. After playing on the slide the boys didn't want to stay still long enough to pick out pumpkins...so we'll have to do that again another day!

Everyday Silly

Not a day goes by where these two do not do something crazy, funny, and silly! I'm just too busy, tired...exhausted to blog about it everyday! Sometimes the boys pretend to be "Mr. Krabs" with potholders for hands and sometimes the boys pretend to be dolphins in the bathtub! Most days the boys pretend that we are all Lion King characters. When Brian or I get laundry from the basement, Hudson stands at the top of the steps yelling "there's hyenas in the prideland". When we eat dinner Bryce will give you five different, silly faces in five seconds! Never a dull moment!

Going Batty for Fall

With the weather that we've been having the past few days it definitely feels like summer is over! I decided to have some fun Friday night instead of watching TV. While Daddy was at the gym, the boys and I hopped in the car and headed to Staples to get a Halloween banner printed. When we got back in the car, ready to head home, Hudson asked "where are we going now?!"...so, I said "who wants donuts?!". Nothing says fall like donuts! Boys were game AND very excited! We got some Dunkin Donuts and headed home to do some crafts. During the ride home I suggested making bats. Hudson remembers bats from our recent trip to the Animal Kingdom in Disney. He said he didn't like bats because they are scary and that he like pumpkins...okay, Hudson! We'll make pumpkins then. As soon as we got home, Daddy got home too! Yay! He could join us, lol. Bryce could hardly contain himself. He wanted a donut so badly, so we started with the goodies! While they were chowing, I put out our festive tablecloth and started getting some colored chalk and paper, because...Hudson wanted to make BATS, haha! I let the boys draw on black card stock for a bit, and then Daddy cut bats out of their art. The bats are now "flying" from our light fixture over the table. Had a great evening with the kiddos! So glad we still have 4 more weekends for festivities ;)

Back to School

I was a little worried that Hudson would have a tough time adjusting to school since he only went for 3 weeks before we left for Disney. While on vacation I constantly talked about his new friends at school and we even picked out a treat for them. Sunday night we made little tags for the suckers that said:

I had a lot of fun with Mickey Mouse,
But missed my new friends from school too!
So I brought back a special treat,
From Disney World to you!
Love,
Hudson

While I ran to Michael's for card stock and ribbon to make the tags, Bryce got his new favorite thing...the potty that he uses as a stool! He got two suckers down from the kitchen counter and he and Hudson attempted to eat them (wrapper and all!). Luckily we still had enough for Hudson to share at school the next morning. Hudson did surprisingly great his first day back! He woke up very happy and did not cry at all when I dropped him off at his room. He got a great report from his teacher for his behavior, as well as an Accident Report! He was playing in the water on the sandbox lid (after the teacher told them not to!) and he fell and hit his cheek on the stones when he was getting off. Ms. Maryann said he was having a ball! The next two days were a little more difficult for Hudson. He cried when I left each morning. Just breaks my heart, but the teacher always says that's he's fine 2 minutes after I leave and then he's pleasant as can be! Trust me, Hudson! I really wish I could stay and play with you. Everyday!

We Went to Disney World!!

1st Airplane Ride

Magic Kingdom


Epcot

Animal Kingdom

Hollywood Studios

Last Day- Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party @ Magic Kingdom

The Lasher's survived Disney World!! We left Saturday September 17th and came home Saturday September 24th. This family vacation was full of many laughs, smiles, meltdowns, and tears! While there were definitely priceless moments, the boys would have probably had a better time had we waited another couple years to take them. They were out of sorts and wouldn't nap on their regular schedule. While Disney is very organized with it's transportation, dining, etc., you must have a lot of patience to endure the crowd of people there. The boys were not thrilled with the characters, but they got better as the week went on. Hudson got to see his favorite, Stitch, and was very willing to give him a "high five", and hug, and even a kiss! The special moments like that made the trip very much worth it! Bryce's reactions to the characters were hilarious! After the first day, when he cried at the very sight of them, he got comfortable with saying "bye bye" and waiving to them as long as Mommy was holding him! B also said "That Way!" pointing to the exit of every restaurant! Teacups and flying Dumbo's were among a few favorites with the boys. They had to ride the yellow teacup everytime! Again, their smiles were priceless. Downtown Disney offered "dancing" water and the boys had the best time running through it. Another priceless moment, and NOT in a good way, is the meltdown that Bryce had our first day there. We were waiting for the Electric Parade, and if you've ever been to Disney you know that you have to get your spot an hour and a half early! The crowd kept packing in closer and closer and Bryce had enough! He screamed and screamed...so we left as quickly as possible. We learned from that first day to take it a little slower. While there were irritable, upsetting moments from tired, exhausted kids those moments are already fading and we are left with such precious memories!