Happy Birthday Alex!

HAPPY 3RD BIRTHDAY ALEXANDER JAMES!!!! Our big man turned 3 on Saturday - and we had a party this past weekend with our Colorado family. Andy's brother, Dallas, Andy's parents, Daryl and Annette, as well as Andy's Grandparents, Marge, Rose, and Rex were all able to come out. We had a great time and ate WAAAAAAY to much - but we were able to laugh some of it off because we had two great entertainers to watch!

Both of the boys were blessed with presents - here Alex is reading a book and Zach is playing with the cool bag he got. (There were gifts in the bag - but you know how it goes....)

Alex with his new "Mater" book.

The aftermath. (And my little Z standing up!!)

Grandpa Bowin setting up the new set of bowling pins for the 47, 322, 197th time.

The crowd watches as Alex perfects his bowling technique.

And now....on to the food! We had BBQ pulled pork roast, homemade mac 'n cheese, fruit and veggies, and chips. I think that everyone was stuffed. After awhile, we decided to break out the cake....

And Zach's "smash" cake...

Alex blowing out the candles...

Alex and Zach as we all sang to them. (Zach was undressed in anticipation of frosting.) :)

Zach and his birthday cupcake....

And Alex digging in to his soccer ball slice of cake.

After the cake and baths, the boys continued playing with all of their new toys. We found a new use for Zach's toy - and he actually enjoyed it!!!

It was funny because when we tried to pull him out, he'd get upset and try to climb back in. Silly guy!!

It was also Halloween, so after supper we got the boys into their costumes - - here's the shot of them all decked out!

Zach was a bee, Alex was a motorcycle racer.

And, now, we have a video for you. We played on the Wii while everyone was here, and Grandpa Bowin wanted to try the soccer ball game. (We posted a video of Alex playing this a while ago). Daryl didn't know we were video taping him - but when we watched it later, it was quite amusing! Also note that Alex is in the lower left-hand corner trying to move in the direction that Grandpa's supposed to go. Silly guy!

We'll have another birthday party in a couple of weeks with the Frank side of the family. For now, we're back to the workweek, playing with our new toys, and trying to catch up on sleep and energy from a very tiring weekend! We had a blast, and were thankful that everyone was able to make it out!

Happy Birthday Zach!

Wow! It seems hard to believe that it has been a year already, but here we are. Zach has been here for 365 days now, and it amazes you when you think about the changes he's made since this time last year.

What follows is a pictorial review of the past few days in our life, and at the end we will have the second of the new blog segment "Famous Mii of the Day".

Without further ado...here we go!

(almost...one more quick note...the pictures that follow are not chronological because blogger is being difficult)

Famous Mii of the Day: Urkel

Alex and Daddy, making cupcakes. You know, traditional father/son bonding time (hunting, fishing, playing catch, cupcake baking).

Alex, showing off his cupcakes.


Warning!!! The next series of pictures were intended to be viewed in chronological order, so if that is your desire as well, scroll down to the bottom and work your way up.



Zach, after the cake. My personal favorite part is the cake booger hanging out of his right nostril.

Katie and Dawson. Dawson is a member of the LBC - little boys club. And one of Alex's best friends.

Alex and Jake. The other two members of the LBC.

That is some good cake.

Zach and Alex checking out the cake.

Getting that first handful of cake. 'Cause the only thing better than a slice of cake is a handful of cake.

Zach, reaching for his very own cake. Alex, checking out mommy with the camera.

Julie, the boys' childcare provider, made Zach his very own cake.

The birthday boy.

Go shorty, its your birthday...we're gonna party like its your birthday.

Cupcake aftermath.

Cupcake aftermath 2.

Topless and covered in frosting...what a way to live my man.

Finally, a video of Zach enjoying his cupcakes.

Hope everyone has a great week. Safe travels to my family who is coming out from Colorado this weekend, and we hope to have more posts up to show off our big boys in the next few days.

Whatever...it's Your Post

First, a quick note about the title of this post. I asked Christine what she thought of my blog post title, and she didn't comment, but rather gave me a different post title. When I asked,
"you didn't like my title?" she responded with "Whatever...it's your post".

So take that, Christine.

Anyway, enough literary squabbling...sorry its been a while since we posted, but sometimes life happens between blog posts (I think I might write a book with that title - "Life Is What Happens Between Blog Posts", by Andy Bowin; forward by Peyton Manning).

Enough of the deragned ramblings of a sleepy father of two...enjoy the pictures and video that follow!

A big belly makes a good pillow for little boys (Notice my lack of glasses? I have been a contact lens man for 3 weeks now!)

Zach, as he prepares to drinketh from the bucket of toy cars. For whatever reason, he always seems surprised as his face gets assaulted by the falling cars.

Alex, after discovering the joys of a standard queen size pillow case.

Alex, as he tries to make his great escape from the pillow case.

Free at last!

Alex, wearing his ghost (or is it a misshapen marshmallow) Halloween costume.

Zach, snuggling with Alex's pillowcase.

Nothing says sophistication like a naked baby eating mac and cheese without silverware. Classy Zach, real classy.

Alex, just a playin' with trains.

The other day while Wii Bowling, I noticed this famous individual in the bowling alley...someone out there (not me) has real issues. And a Wii with wireless internet access.

And finally, he moment we have all been waiting for!

That's right...Zach has been walking off and on for about a week now. He does a little better everyday!

I hope you all enjoyed. Have a great week!

Menu for Birthday Party

We asked Alex tonight what he wanted to eat at his birthday party. What follows is a list of the foods he named (and the reasons why he wants them in some cases):

-Grilled cheese
-Mac -n- cheese
-Carrots
-Celery
-Veggies
-Lemon pepper (because uncle Dallas and Rah-rah {aunt Sarah} will like it)
-Fish sticks
-Ice cream sandwiches

I'm sure there will be more to come...stay tuned.

Frank B-Day Weekend Changed...

To those of you attending the Frank Birthday Weekend - -

the dates have been changed to November 13-15, with the party on the 14th. After talking with a few more people, we decided that this weekend would be better for everyone. :)

Haircuts!!

Well, we couldn't put it off any longer - Zach needed his first haircut (mind you, Alex had already had 4 at this point....)

After baths one night, this is what it looked like.....

Before the cut......

Alex before the cut.......

And :::::::drumroll, please ::::::::::::, THE HANDSOMEST MEN IN THE WORLD!!! Fresh out of the bathtub, clean-cut, mmmmmmm!!!!!!

We sat on the floor and had popcorn as a treat. Alex still screamed and cried throughout the entire thing, Zach smiled and even giggled during his. What gives?!?!

And a samplig of Zach's giggles - he's become very tuned in to the camera, so once he sees it, he basically stops what he's doing to watch it. There's a little bit of laughing, though. :)

Zach's 11 months and Alex's new shoes!!

Today Zach is officially 11 months old - my baby is gone, but I am so very happy with the little boy that he is becoming. We got a couple of great shots!

He's close to walking - he just needs more practice. He has four teeth that have poked through - the two bottom ones are fully in, and the two top teeth have just poked through. From what I can tell, there arent' many more on the horizon (or gumline). :) Zach loves fruits and veggies - many nights Alex and Zach are racing each other to see who can eat the last of them! I guess it's a good problem to have!

Alex got some new shoes in the mail from Grandma Le and Grandpa Dave - and they're Lightening McQueen!! It was so funny when he first put them on - he'd run three steps, stop to look at the lights, and then go three more steps. He was willing to run tonight as long as we let him look at it on the computer. :)

Have a great week!!

Birthday Wish Lists

We've had quite a few phone calls, e-mails, and text messages about things that the boys want for their birthdays. Here's a few suggestions:

Zach

--Clothing - size 12 months
--Toys - right now he's really into throwing balls (not like we have any of those around the house), and anything that will promote walking (he just needs to get his confidence up right now).
--Heavy winter coat, snowpants, boots (size 6 - shoes), gloves/mittens, hat
--Money for his savings account

Alex

--Clothing - size 3T
--Thomas the Tank Engine - any toys, movies, clothing, etc.....he loves it all! If you find something specific and want to double check if we have it, just give one of us a call - there's way too much to list on here! :)
--"Cars" figures (the movie) - he has Lightening McQueen, Doc, Chick, and Mack, plus the movie. He had mentioned that he wanted the sheet set and blanket when we were at Wal-Mart, he has a twin size bed, if you're so inclined.
--Heavy winter coat, snowpants, boots, etc. (shoe size - 10), hat, gloves/mittens
--Thomas magazine - more information at http://www.redan.com/, or else he loves any other magazine to do with animals. (he loves getting mail, too). If you do purchase the magazine, please leave a comment on here so that others also know that this one has been "taken". (we promise not to let Alex read the blog until his birthday). :)
--Money for his savings account

Both boys enjoy books - so that's always a safe bet. :)

By no means is this an exhaustive list, actually it's a bit skinny - but just go with what you want. The boys aren't picky - anything will be great! THANK YOU!

Also, in case you haven't marked your calendars:

Bowin family birthday weekend: October 30-November 1 (parties on the 31st)

Frank family birthday weekend: November 13-15 (parties on the 14th).

Our house is available for anyone who wants to stay here - remember that we only have two extra beds, however. Let us know if you have any other questions!! :)

Update from afar....

Hello! Once again life has gotten the better of us, and it's been a while since we posted.

The weekend after Labor Day we headed out to Colorado to watch the air show that Andy's hometown puts on. Grandma and Grandpa Bowin and Uncle Dallas all were helping with the air show, but we did get a chance to see Great-Grandma Marge, as well as Great-Gramdma and Grandpa Wagner. We didn't get to see anyone as much as we would have liked to, but we did have a great time for the little amount of time we were together.

The air show was amazing! It was super cold and rainy, but we had a canopy, so it was great to be out of the rain. We watched a parachuter, which Alex loved to see the ribbons hanging from her. They had a wing-walker, but they had to cancel their stunt because of the rain. (Yeah, I wouldn't want 100 mph hitting me as I tried to walk the slick wings of a plane....). They also had an F-16 there - that was breathtaking! I can't believe just how fast they can go - and I am sure we didn't even see half of what it can do! They advised us to cover the kids' ears when it would go by - and Alex needed it! Zach, however, fell asleep before the performance, and SLEPT THROUGH THE ENTIRE THING!!! I held him, just because I wanted to be able to cover his ears quickly and comfortably. One ear was up against my arm, and the other ear was under a blanket and my hand.....yet he still slept. I guess I don't need to worry about Alex waking him up in the middle of the night.....do I? ;)

Here are a few shots of us at the air show....(I need to get better with the camera!)

Zach, amongst the dirt and hay. :)

Alex, Zach, and I on the blankets at the air show. (Alex ended up falling asleep on my lap like this)

Zach watching the WWII reinactment. (Alex was really scared, so he and I went to the car and ate cotton candy) :)

When we got back, Alex had a surprise package for being potty trained!! (If we didn't share that already on the blog - yes, Alex is fully trained - even at night! Hurray!!) In it, there were a number of wonderful Thomas things - including his new Thomas puzzle. (he needed just a *little* bit of help) ;)

Zach chooses the most curious sleeping positions. Apparently, he was dreaming about teaching a kickboxing class....or karate.....or the can-can.......or aerobics.....or he's just being our Zach. :)

It's hard to believe that such a little boy can cause such a B-I-G mess!!

This past weekend we had guests! Kyle, Amy and their son Micah, as well as Tim, Kari, and their daughter Lucy all came out to visit. The guys spent most of Saturday and all of Sunday morning looking for turkeys. Unfortunately, all of the turkeys could only be seen from a distance, so they came home empty-handed. We did all get to watch the Husker game Saturday night, and that was the only shot I took the entire weekend! (I HAVE to get better about this camera thing!!) :)

On the far left, you can see Lucy's pink pant leg (she's about 2 weeks older than Zach), then Micah (who will be two in March), and you can barely see Zach's blond head over Alex's head....Kyle is laying across the floor. He was the human jungle gym for a good portion of the evening. :)

We had a great time - we NEED to get together more often!!

And a video of the boys playing well together - it's happening more and more often now. Alex still has to be reminded (frequently, at times) that Zach isn't quite up to all of the rough-housing yet, but they do enjoy playing. We especially get a kick out of Zach's hair......it's crazy!