New Year's Eve!

Today is New Year's Eve! Do you have plans? The boys do!

They are going to Camp Grandmother!!

Brian and I need to do some painting at the house. Our living room & hall is brown, and while it's actually pretty and the previous owners did a good job painting, it makes our house too dark. So it's going to be replaced with a yellow. That ought to brighten it up! We are dropping the boys off at Grandmother & Granddaddy's this afternoon. We actually have a birthday party for a friend tonight, and then we'll head back here tomorrow and start painting.

I'll be back next week with news on the boys. Hope your 2009 starts off well!

Charlie Brown

The boys have a new favorite to watch: Charlie Brown.

Several years ago I got the Charlie Brown "Three Pack" (Great Pumpkin, Thanksgiving, and Christmas) for my dad. We missed the Great Pumpkin when it came on TV during Halloween, so I borrowed it from my dad. Now the boys are huge fans. They request Charlie Brown (all 3!) on a regular basis.

Yesterday they were playing with their school bus, and they named some of their people after Charlie Brown characters: Marcie and Franklin. And while I was reading the paper on Sunday, the comics fell out and Ben saw the Peanuts strip. Of course he recognized Lucy & Linus, so I had to read it to him. Multiple times! And why wasn't Charlie Brown in the paper? He was on vacation.

Fisher Price Little People

I don't know who the genius is behind Fisher Price Little People, but he/she is indeed a genius. The boys got a School Bus for Christmas and have had more fun just playing with their school bus. Now I learn they've got Little People Town! We'll have to look at that for their birthday.


The Little People ride on Seth's train engine.

Playing with their new vehicles & signs on the playmat. Of course the school bus is the center of attention.

You might not be able to see it, but Seth's "man" is walking out the back of the school bus.
Ben wears the bucket for a hat.
Seth models his bucket hat. In both of these pictures the boys are wearing pajamas. That's because we had a lazy day on Saturday. The boys wore pajamas until supper time, only changed because we had to run an errand in public.

Christmas 2008

It's been fun!

On Christmas Eve, we spent the day and early afternoon with husband's family, then off to my parents' church for services. After church, Santa made a special appearance. My parents know Santa, personally, so he came by for a visit before the boys went to sleep. They weren't scared of him, but were very stand-off-ish at the Santa they saw at the sleigh ride. Maybe they liked this Santa because he came to their house. Anyway, they visited for a bit, and Santa had to go back to work. So we sprinkled Reindeer food (oats & birdseed) outside for Rudolph and his friends, and then it was off to bed.

The boys woke up about 7:45am and came into our room. I stalled them long enough for me to wash my face & brush my teeth. Then we came downstairs (we spent the night at my parents' house). Oh how exciting!

They opened their gifts and just loved them. Santa was very generous to our family this year. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!

PS - this is my 100th post! Wow! Has it been that long?

Merry Christmas!

"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this." Isaiah 9:6-7

Merry Christmas from the Boyettes!

Seth Rakes

This was just after church recently. Ben was asleep in the car, which is why he's not raking. Seth decided to help.

Sleigh Ride

A few weekends ago we took a sleigh ride at a local nursery. They had marshmallows to roast, things to make s'mores (which we didn't because it was too messy, plus we didn't have any extra hands because we were trying to keep the boys out of the fire), hot chocolate, hot cider, and lots of other yummy treats.

The sleigh ride was lots of fun. We sat in a trailer (which was really nice) and was pulled by a tractor. Instantly Seth was sold, riding behind a tractor. Mrs. Claus was our tour guide, and we drove around their property, through a lighted path. They had lighted arch-ways, and Seth loved them. He kept saying "go under blue one, go under green one". The first "stop" on our path was Beachy Santa. He was outfitted in swim trunks and a Hawaiian shirt. And I don't remember the order of the others, but we saw Frosty driving a boat, a reindeer driving a truck, a nativity scene where we saw Baby Jesus, and 3 elves. Three teenage girls had dressed as elves, and they did a great job.

We finished up the experience by talking to Santa. But the boys weren't too excited about Santa. Ben did touch his beard.

All in all it was a great time. The weather was much warmer than we anticipated, but we were prepared in case it was cold! We'll go back next year!

Seth not talking to Santa.
The whole family & Santa!


Seth eating his roasted marshmallow. It was a hit.
Ben enjoyed his, too.


On the sleigh ride. It was hard to take a picture because it was dark, and for some reason the camera screen just showed darkness. It didn't adjust for lack of light. Oh well. Here's most of us!

Holiday Bustle

Well, we are in the thick of the holiday bustle. And the sad part: we haven't even been shopping. We have been busy getting decorations up, attempting to keep the house slightly in order as we've had friends over, wearing all of my many hats in various organizations, and keeping up with two toddlers!

The weather has been warm enough for us to play outside, but we've had a lot of rain!

Today we went to the base, where Brian works, for his office luncheon. The boys had a big time, running around the room. They have a Chinese Christmas (or White Elephant exchange, whatever you choose to call it), and Brian let Ben pick out a gift when it was his turn. He actually got something good: some kind of stuffed frog that croaks BINGO. It's pretty funny! Ben thoroughly enjoyed his chicken leg, which he licked clean. Right down to the bone, smacking the whole time.

Oh, and Ben ripped his red corduroy pants. I'm not sure how. He said it was on a stool, and we have a small footstool (very very small) that he may have fallen on. Anyway, the rip was not in a seam, so I had to make a new pair. He's very fortunate that I had just enough fabric left for another pair.

Some people have asked if the boys are excited about Christmas. The answer is not really. They haven't figured it all out yet. They really like the Christmas tree, and if it's not lit Ben wants me to turn the lights on right away! But while they like to look at Santa, they don't want to touch him. Rudolph is just okay, but Frosty the Snowman is the favorite! We have that book (the really old Golden Book version) and they love it.

We have done very little (only 2 gifts!) shopping, so we need to get busy on that. Only a week left! I am feeling the pressure!

Christmas Cuties!

Today the children sang at Bible Study. Ben & Seth didn't sing, they just stood there. It was strange. They came marching in, holding hands with each other, and during the entire performance, Seth stood with his hand on Ben's shoulder. Everyone remarked how cute they were!

Here are a few pictures from today, taken by a friend. I can't let them see me during these performances, or they will cry and never go back to their class.

Fascination with the Humidifier

Ben and I are sick. We each have a cough. Ben also has a yucky nose, and with this cold weather, his nose is very dry. So last night we got the bright idea to put the humidifier back in his room.

Husband did bedtime last night. He got the humidifier all ready, explained to Ben we hoped it would help his cough, and plugged it in.

Instantly they were amazed. Fascinated. Before he plugged it in and turned it on, both boys put their hands over their ears. They thought it would be loud. But of course it isn't, and so they removed their hands. Then Seth put his ear on it so he could hear the quiet whirring. Next they saw the bubbles, and were again amazed.

It's very easy, as busy, multi-tasking adults, to forget the fascination over little things. Like a humidifier. Thankfully we have children to remind us.

Thanksgiving 2008

We had a great holiday, I hope you did!

One of my sisters-in-law lives out of state, and we don't see her often, so when she was able to come home for whole week of Thanksgiving, we made a bee-line for her! The boys had lots of fun at Grandmother & Granddaddy B's house, especially with their aunts, uncle, and dog-cousins.

The boys had their first trip to Parker's. We went on Wednesday night, and even Seth ate. I was beside myself with amazement. He ate bbq, fried chicken, potatoes, and hush puppies. With milk. Milk makes everything YUM! Ben ate well too.

The actual day of Thanksgiving was fun. We went to another family member's house and joined lots of loved ones in celebration of the day. Both boys ate well. Ben is not a fan of butter beans, much to our dismay. His grandparents grow these in the garden and they are always so yummy. But oh well, I guess that just means more for me! Seth likes them (strange!). Seth is also on a carrot fix. He loves them. Yay! One more veggie to add to the approved list.

We were all sad to return home, but at the same time thrilled to be in our own beds. I've been catching up with grocery shopping, emails, laundry, and housework this week. OH, and it's 3 weeks before Christmas! So I better get busy!

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! Here are a few pictures.


We went to the NCSU vs Miami football game. It was really really cold, and rained just a bit. We've actually shed some of our clothing here. Did I mention it was cold? (I see Blogger is still being weird with my typing.)

Grandmother saved all of her children's toys, so the boys are playing with their aunts' "waffle blocks" and their Grandmother made them a train. They're really excited!
Ben is French.
Ben & daddy on Thanksgiving.
Seth on his "little bed" at Grandmother's. There weren't enough beds for all, but Seth was thrilled with his pallet. Ben had a small crib mattress on the floor, and he kept rolling off it. He is a violent sleeper. I already feel sorry for his wife. They might need twin beds.
Ben at Parker's for his first time, eating a chicken leg.
Seth enjoying his first trip to Parker's.
The boys playing on their swingset at their Grandparents' house. Brian had been cutting down some trees, hence the overalls.

Recent Pictures

Ben has a crayon behind his ear. He's seen his daddy do this! (I have no idea why this is typing as a hyperlink. Blogger is being weird.)
Seth has wild hair.
Seth made a choo-choo-train with his tricycle.
Playing outside late in the afternoon.
Ben's first tricycle ride! It didn't last long. He's not quite ready.
Ben has on a hat, or two!
Seth's first tricycle ride! He's not quite ready either, but he'll probably be ready before Ben.



Ben's a cool dude!They wore plaid knickers to church for our Scot's Heritage Day.Rainy day!