Brothers....

Aidan and Owen are such great brothers....most of the time. Aidan is such a gentle person. He does not hit or have any aggression toward his brother. We are so blessed! Aidan was not at all jealous of his brother or the attention he got from others. Owen is learning to be gentle. We do have the occasional, "Momma don't let Owen......(fill in the blank)" Aidan will go in his bedroom, close the door, and block it so Owen can't come in. Later that same morning, Aidan will want Owen to come and sit in the TV room or come in the playroom just to be together. Owen loves his brother. He is constantly following Aidan around. Whatever Aidan does, Owen tries! Owen has no fear, ER here we come! We put a big wooden play set in the backyard for their birthdays. Owen promptly went up the slide. This is a big curved slide! The play set also has a rock climbing wall, and a ladder. Both the ladder and the wall have been conquered by my 16 month old! He was playing on the top this summer, and he fell all the way off. He was a little shaken, but it has not scared him enough to make him stop. Again, I say ER here we come! Can I get a fast pass?

Our trip to Aggieland.....

On Sunday, Shane was working on my pantry (pictures coming soon), so Aidan and I decided to go see the Arnold's new house in College Station. Aidan loves to play with Lauren and Caleb. Stephanie and I like to sit around and chat. Stephanie did not tell Lauren that we were coming, so Aidan got to wake her up from her nap. Boy was she surprised! Stephanie says she talks about Aidan all the time. While the kids played, Stephanie make some Caramel popcorn that was awesome. I grabbed a handful every time I went into the kitchen. We took the kids swimming Sunday night for about 30 minutes after dinner, and then went back to the house to settle in for the night. Aidan and I slept in Caleb's room. Of course, Aidan got the Thomas the Train bed. Aidan and I slept late on Monday. We got up at 9:30, and everyone had already eaten breakfast. The kids played for a while and then we loaded up to go shopping! That evening we took the kids swimming again. Stephen was in the pool, and Stephanie and I were on the sides taking pictures. Aidan bought a shark float that he was so excited to use, however when he got on the float it flipped over and that was the end of the shark. He would not even have it in the pool, that is until Caleb wanted to play with it. We actually left it in College Station. After swimming, I decided I was ready to head home. I left at 9:00, but I had a nap, so I was not tired. I wanted to sleep in my own bed and snuggle with Shane and Owen. Thanks for having us Stephanie, Stephen, Lauren, Caleb and Abby!

Grandpa Steve....

Grandpa Steve came to visit us again this last week. He was on his way back home, after visiting his family in Arkansas. He is so special to us. My mother passed away unexpectedly in November of 2006. I was 6 1/2 months pregnant with Owen, so he never met his Ninna. She was an awesome Ninna! Boy how she loved her Ainey! Steve and my mother, Linda, dated for many years. We are so pleased that he remains in our lives. I know it is hard for him to visit us, but we so enjoy his visits. Grandpa Steve lives on a farm in Orange Grove, and Aidan talks constantly about going to Grandpa Steve's ranch. He also talks about Grandpa Steve's hotel room, and the cold pool. While Grandpa Steve was here, Shane had a little project he needed some help on. I keep telling Shane that he will stop coming if we don't quit giving him projects. Steve can do ANYTHING!!! Steve helped Shane get the pantry framed. I happen to believe that my mom is so proud of Steve! For Mother's day this last year, Shane planted me a new flower bed in the front of our house with all of my mom's favorite flowers. The roses that he planted have never bloomed, until Steve's visit. There are three blooms.....

Guilt....

Ok, so the guilt is starting to get to me...or is that my precious husband asking if I have updated the blog? I haven't posted anything in almost a week. Here are some things going on in the Skinner household...

*Grandpa Steve came in town, and we went swimming in his hotel pool. It was freezing, so we spent most of the time in the hot tub. It was great getting to see him! I know it is hard for him to come see us because we remind him of my mom. Aidan and Owen love him so much. Grandpa Steve gives them his undivided attention and brings them donuts.

*Aidan has spent a lot of time playing with Noah. They have fun together!

*Aidan attended VBS, but only for one night! He would not go back after the first night because it was too loud. He must be his father's son, because I don't mind noise. =)

*Owen is attempting to say a lot of words, but we are not quite sure what they are. =) He grunts and points, and then finally grabs your hand and shows you what he needs.

*Owen and Rio, our dog, have become great friends lately. Owen thinks it is hilarious to feed Rio whatever he is eating. The other day he was finished with his yogurt, so he just threw it on the floor and Rio finished it. Owen is a very strong willed child.....any suggestions?????

*Shane has been working so hard on our yard. It is really looking GREAT! Thanks Babe!

*I found out of Tuesday that our Assistant Principal will not be coming back next year....that makes me very sad!

*We spent a few day in Wichita Falls because our nephew, Garrett, was on the University Little League District 7 team. They won district and went to Wichita Falls for sectionals. They won 2 games and lost 2 games, so they are out of the running for state champs. We are so proud of Garrett! He is such an awesome player, but more importantly he is a great nephew! Love ya Garrett!

*Nanny and JoJo are going to start keeping the boys for 2 days a week, so Shane and I can get some stuff done. I was so excited about this! I spent a few hours at my school working on my room, and then came home for a nap. I love napping! This was going to be the first nap I have taken all summer without my child. I rushed home, turned the phones off, turned the air down, and snuggled in bed......for about 15 minutes. I could not sleep! If you know me you know I can always sleep, so I don't know what was up. The boys will go to Nanny and JoJo's again on Friday, so maybe I will get a good nap then.

*Demolition Day is tomorrow.....Shane and Grandpa Steve are going to make me a walk in pantry. I can't wait!!!! Shane has worked so hard on our home. He loves all the little projects, and fortunately he can do the majority of them by himself or with little help. I am so blessed!

Well, that is about it for the Skinner update!

Zoo trip with Papa, Elsa, and the Skinner family

We went to the zoo today with Papa and Elsa. It was very hot! We went to the flamingos first. Within 2 minutes Owen had already been pooped on by a bird in the tree. Everyone said it was lucky, but I think it's gross! We got to see the monkeys, baby giraffe, snakes, elephants, tigers, lions, bears, fish, turtles...you get the picture. Aidan was so excited, but his excitement was short lived. He would look at the animals for a second, and then say, "Let's go look at something else." Owen was just taking it all in. This was his first trip to the zoo. He did not exactly know what to think about the animals, especially the monkeys.

Papa and the boys also decided to take a little cool off break, and they ran under the water tower! They were all soaking wet! The boys, Elsa, and Shane rode the merry-go-round while Papa and I tried to get just one decent picture without getting sick. After the day at the zoo, we decided to ride the train back to the entrance.

We ended the day with lunch at Chili's and some air conditioning! The boys passed out on the way home. Thanks Papa and Elsa for treating us to the zoo!

Best Buddies!!!

Last Friday we had a play date with Grayson! The boys had a blast! They got along great, and Angie and I got some time to relax. =) Time sure flies...it seem like just yesterday they were newborns laying in the floor staring at each other.

Owen's dr. appointment...

Owen got tubes back in the beginning of June, so when he spiked a fever we got worried. We took him to see the doctor today, and THANK GOD it is not his ears, or his throat, or his nose....so what you ask is it??? He has a viral infection! We just have to keep the fever under control, and make sure he gets plenty of liquids. We came home from the doctor and all took naps. When we woke up, Shane was out washing the cars. Evidently Owen was feeling better because he was "helping" daddy. =) Both boys were soaking wet and having a blast!

4th of July Fun.....

We began our morning with the Arlington parade. This is our second year to go, and it is great! Elsa has some friends who take their travel trailer out there, so we have access to a restroom. Always a good thing with children. Some of our friends went with us, Angie, Steve, Grayson, Tracie, Bill, Noah, and Elsa. We got there about 8:30, and since the parade did not start until 9:00, we decided to walk to 7-11. What better to buy that early than ice cream. We went for some slurpees, but the machine had not frozen the drinks yet. Go figure! Fear not, because they had already had sausage rolls, thanks to Elsa. It was so hot! Aidan was running around playing with Vincent and Noah, but Owen sat in Elsa's lap the whole time. Owen is a very busy boy, so he must have been very interested in the parade.



From the parade we went to Nanny and JoJo's house for our family reunion. Nanny invited everyone to come over and enjoy some brisket, hot dogs, and hamburgers with all the fixings. It was great to see the family

again. Our last reunion was 2 years ago, so it was time for another. =)

JoJo bought Aidan a small pool to play in when he was little. Owen LOVES it too! Owen strips down to his diaper and away he goes. Owen got a hold of the hose, and was soaking anyone who came close. He was so cute with that little mischievous grin. Everyone says Owen will make me pay for my raising, but Mom and Papa always say I was easy. Maybe Owen is making Shane pay for his raising. =) Either way it is a good thing God made Owen so CUTE!

These are some of my favorite pictures. The first one is on my Aunt Billie. Aunt Billie and Uncle JD have been so good to me. They never had children of their own, so I am like their daughter and granddaughter in one. They love Aidan and Owen too! They call them their grand babies, and show off pictures of them when ever they get a chance. And the other picture does not need any explanation.....Owen would not sleep when I held him, but you can sure see the comfort when he is with his JoJo.

We decided to go home and take rests. Aidan no longer likes to nap (so he says), although his mommy does. Aidan says he is just going to rest, but about 2 hours later he wakes up refreshed. That evening we went to a little spot where we could see the fireworks, but not be in the middle of the congestion when it is over. We got there at 9, but the show did not start until 9:30, so the kids lit some sparklers and had a blast! We watched the fireworks with our great friends and neighbors, Donna, Robert and Dini. Aidan was more interested in fixing the road and talking to the traffic, but he did catch a few fireworks. Needless to say, we all slept really well that night! It was an extremely busy day, but I loved every minute of it!

Owen....

Owen is running a fever, so today was spent taking care of him. He started running a 102.9 yesterday night, and it continued throughout the day. I am going to call the doctor in the morning. =( Not a very exciting post, but such is life.

First time for everything.....

I am finally beginning to blog!!! Stephanie will be so proud of me! Years ago Stephanie introduced me to scrapbooking, and I actually have 3 completed books. However, since I am a busy mom of 2 active boys, I don't have time to scrapbook anymore. =( I am going to attempt to keep up with this blog. Please visit our family site again. Feel free to post any messages you would like to. =)