HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY CAITLYN!

Monday we celebrated Caitlyn's first birthday. She loved eating the cupcakes and playing with all the kids and watching all the kids open her presents! She is doing so much right now, she can walk, climb up stairs, say several words (mama, dada, ni-night, "eat-eat" for Pete, "titty" for kitty, hi, bye bye, tink-tink, something like Shadow I am told by everyone else, moo, dolly and I am sure a few others), eats all kinds of table food with us, has totally gotten rid of all her bottles, and now goes to sleep on her own in her crib...most nights! She is a good shopper, has a girly attitude and loves all kinds of girly things, and knows how to fight with her brother already and exactly which buttons to push to make him angry! She is definitely going to be a lot of fun for us!

Thursday, on her birthday, we will be getting her pictures taken, and I am sure that I will have to do another batch of cupcakes of some sort for her so she can get frosting all over herself again!

As to Christopher we just took him to his first day of Rhyme Time today and he loved it! Ryan dropped him off and much to our surprise he immediately went for the toys and didn't look back! He had a lot of fun playing with the kids and learned something where he slaps his hands on his legs and whispers slower slower and speeds it up and gets louder until he is screaming louder louder and hits his hands on his lap really fast. He thinks it is great anyway! He tells us regularly now that he is a farmer, golfer, ref. He has gotten so tall over the summer...you can tell that he is getting older!

Ryan is back to his refing again, the kids and I are trying our best to find things to do, but Christopher really misses his daddy on those nights! We have gone to a few football games, but with the cooler weather, I don't know how many more we will get to. Next week starts the craziness of the Spencer fair, and soon after will be harvest. Christopher is already looking in the fields every day for the combines!

Summer Fun

We have been busy this last month. Seems like I never get time to get the camera out, or much less to get the blog done! These pictures come from Memorial Day weekend fishing at Douma Pit. We took Pete out fishing. It was a hot day, and he had a lot of fun...especially walking around in the water. We took him fishing this past week at Okoboji after Caitlyn's 9 month pictures. He still has not caught a fish, but at least at Okoboji he had a lot more fun! There were all kinds of fish swimming around him right off the doc, and he got a couple of bites! He also has been loving his kitty "Oreo". He loves to carry the kitty around the yard, and the last few days he has been helping the big boys paint the fence. Yep, it is a bit of a mess, but the fence will look great when it is all done!

Caitlyn is now 9 months. She has had a busy last month as I said in the last post. She has now added a few steps on to all the other things she was doing. This past week she took a few steps to daddy. She is growing very quickly! She has the crawling thing mastered now, and is crawling all over the house. Seems like she's getting into everything!

We are getting spoiled this summer by our nanny Danielle. The kids love sleeping in and staying up late. They are getting really good naps in during the afternoon, and we're all eating good at dinner as I get up and make something and have Danielle throw it in the oven so when I get home at noon it is all ready to eat! She also has been doing some cleaning which really helps me out! We miss her right now as she is in Cary Mississippi on a serve project with our church. She'll be back the week after though! So, in the meantime they are with Amanda and Grandma Edith which they love too.

Caitlyn had her 9 month pictures the other day. You can check them out at http://www.lillygracephotography.com/. Go to Online ordering, check under Caitlyn and the password is freese.

Summer is near!

Shadow and Caitlyn have become good friends...She squeals in delight every time she sees him!

Wow! We just keep getting busier and the blog keeps getting neglected!

Last night was a daring first, we took both kids for their first trip to the theater to watch Shrek Ever After. They actually did fairly well, we thought Caitlyn would fall asleep, but it was too noisy in there so she was as busy as she could trying to keep herself awake...but was fairly quiet in the process and really didn't cry at all (which is very normal for her ). Christopher laughed a lot at the movie, got a little bored in the middle, but then was shaking his bootie at the end. I'm not sure if he really enjoyed it all that much, he really kinda said it was too noisy in there, and I think he would have rather been farming.

Christopher is busy doing all kinds of farming lately. He can't go more than a few hours without some type of farming! He has also been singing a few songs other than the Phineas and Ferb theme song! Yesterday it was He's got the whole world in his hands, and he sang it perfect! We also had him finger paint for the first time, and it was fairly successful, it helps though that he hates to have dirty hands!

Caitlyn is has gotten really big this past month! She is now army crawling, crawling a few steps, pulling herself up on furniture, standing for just a second or two on her own, and shaking her head no at appropriate times. She also has been eating a ton of new foods including watermelon, popcorn, spaghetti, hot dogs, and of course her favorite french fries. It's amazing to see how much she has changed. She also is getting a little longer hair, even though it's very thin, and she just popped her 3rd tooth this past week or two (it took a long while for it to come through!).

Ryan keeps saying every week that he is going to be done at the end of the week with all the planting, and each week he keeps getting more and more orders. He is out of seed in his barn though, and now has to run all over the place to get what he needs! Makes for some long days!

I keep busy at work, this past month I had several continuing education meetings in Sioux Falls, Minneapolis, and Des Moines. I should be done for the year now...thank goodness! We also are expecting that our new vehicle will arrive any day. We ordered it in March, so hopefully it will get here before the gas prices get too high!

We are looking forward to memorial day weekend, hopefully we can get a bonfire and some golfing in!

I am finally getting around to getting the pictures we had done last month on here. Seems I never have free time to do these things anymore! The kids are doing great, but once again they have colds, and they managed to share with me. Caitlyn is eating every food in sight that we'll let her eat, up on all 4 rocking back and forth, but not quite crawling yet and she popped two teeth a few weeks ago. Christopher is reading books (green eggs and ham) and farming everywhere. We're all getting really excited for summer and excited that we'll have Danielle coming to our house to babysit the kids every day. Pete will love it...stay up late at night and sleep in the next morning!

it's been awhile!

Caitlyn put on her beauty eye mask for this picture!

Pete got stuck trying to get this egg!

As you can see, Christopher and Ryan had a lot of fun making the easter eggs, and then Pete had a ball looking for all the Eggs that morning. He of course only at candy that day and nothing healthy, but I guess that is what you get. Caitlyn also got in on finding an egg with daddy and she got her Easter toys too. Both of them were pretty good at church easter morning too with all of their new toys.

A few weeks ago we went to DesMoines for the weekend. Christopher had so much fun at the science museum. We went their with Ryan's friend Ben, his wife Krista and their kids Abbie and Jackson. I am quite sure that Christopher could have played on this digger for the entire vacation, but we had to limit him to just an hour there (no kidding!). Good thing it was almost the last building we stopped at. We also did a bunch of swimming that weekend at the hotel. Christopher loved it, and of course we went to the Bass Pro and Christopher got to see all the fish. Caitlyn also was soo good for the trip. She was great in the car, great going to all the places, really good sleeping in the hotel, but on the way home she did get quite crabby in the car seat and was very sick of it. I'll give her that! She otherwise did VERY well!

Yes it has been a long time since I last blogged. Something about having a laptop that is never available! Ryan has been very busy moving seed around...the last two days he has filled his pickup with gas. Hoping for a few quieter days now with the weekend. Caitlyn has been really busy she is up on all four rocking now, and says mama and dada, and wants to eat all things that we eat. She also is working on getting her first tooth through, and really is doing quite well so far. Christopher is also doing well...he wants so badly for Caitlyn to say PetePete, but she usually ends up calling him dada for lack of better words yet. He also has been reading stories to her more, the other night it was Green Eggs and Ham..it went something like "I am Sam, I don't like green eggs and ham, not in a box, not with fox, not in house, not it car, not in boat", etc etc etc as he turned the pages, and then "try them, I like them". I'd say he did pretty good since I only read it to him twice that night and we really haven't read it for a long time! He's also been practicing golfing again. Today we hit the course with him, Caitlyn will go to Grandmas house. It should be fun. As for me, work has been very busy and now I start lots of time with continuing ed since I have a lot due by June! Ryan and the kids will have to fend for themselves!

busy weeks!

mom was pretty surprised walking in!
Pete and Bver wear their boots the same way!

Caitlyn and Jaela in their tutus

Christopher's favorite thing to do at Grandma's work is ride the chairs around the circles...fun for us only for a short while!

Caitlyn had more fun chewing on her tutu...it was kinda like a built in toy!

Caitlyn has figured out how to drive Christopher's 4-wheeler, and she loves it!

Pete liked petting one of the twin calves we have

We took the kids outside to play this afternoon, Christopher had a ball...Caitlyn wasn't too sure about things yet!

THis weekend we finally had the chance to surprise my mother for her 60th Birthday. She definitely was surprised as we all waited for her in the hospital when she came in thinking she had to help with an emergency surgery. Afterwards we went for pizza and cake at the Pizza Ranch (by the way...they did an awesome job...definitely recommend them to anyone!) where Christopher had fun playing with the kids and then with the balloons! The rest of the weekend has been pretty quiet, but we did sneak out this afternoon to go help Ryan with the chores. Christopher loved it, Caitlyn wasn't so sure about things. This weekend we head for our first big overnight trip since Caitlyn was born. We're headed to Des Moines for a long weekend. It should be fun to take the kids out and go swimming in the pool.

6 months old and more

Someone let Caitlyn make this mess...course that someone also got to clean it up! :)

This picture makes me so happy...we actually have a lot of this snow melted now, so I had to put that on there to remind me that even though it's not going as fast as I want, it is still definitely better than it was.

Yes, it has been awhile since I've been to blog...something about my computer is always occupied by someone else is probably why. But, since last time, Caitlyn and Christopher had their doctors check-ups. Caitlyn is doing wonderful at 18lbs, 27 inches (both 90th percentile) while Christopher is hanging out at 33lbs, 39 inches, just over 50th percentile. Hopefully someday she will not catch up to him! Caitlyn is trying some eye drops right now for her blocked tear duct...seems to be making a bit of a difference. Hopefully we can get it to "unblock" before she turns a year or we may have to get that fixed. Right now both kids are once again getting over another cold. I think that this one has a lot more to do with the weather changing and the fact that their immune systems are worn down with all the colds this winter. Yeah for spring coming soon!

The normal daycare lady has been out with pneumonia the last few weeks, so the kids have been bouncing around a little. Christopher loves going to Tricia's house for daycare (if only she lived closer!)..and seems to find a way to text her on my phone quite frequently. Luckily now she knows what is going on and just writes back :) They also have spent some time at Amanda and Grandma Edith's house. Pete loves the dog and tractors there too. Today it is back to Rhondas...hopefully they'll do well!

Caitlyn is doing very well sitting and creeping all over the place. She gets on the floor and rolls right to her tummy and then starts moving backwards all over...she has been popping up on all four for a bit too...wont' be long. So far she has only rolled to her back one time by accident...I've decided she has no desire and will never do it! She also has been jabbering like crazy and now jabbers mama and dada...not so much with any purpose that we can figure out other than she says mamama when she is crabby and wants to cuddle or be comforted, and dadada when she looks at either of us. Pete has been trying to get her to say "pete pete", but so far no luck there! He always says "mom, she won't say Pete Pete" and gets upset and walks away. Caitlyn just laughs at him. Soon enough he'll wish she never said it!

As to calving season, we are almost done with two sets of twins this year, but only one set with both calves alive. A few more weeks and they should be all done. The majority all came in one week (good timing, right?)

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HAPPY 3RD BIRTHDAY!

This past week we celebrated Pete's 3rd birthday. And, we did a LOT of celebrating. 3 seems to be the age where kids finally figure out what a birthday is and what it is all about, and so we did it up for him. The big birthday party was on Sunday, and then Monday we continued celebrating all day. Pete still wakes up every morning and wants to celebrate some more! During his party, I think he was to wound up to absorb it all...but he did get in all the classic blowing out the candles and opening presents. He also showed us what a typical kid he was when he opened clothes, promptly threw them aside, and went on to the next toy present and played with that. So what are his biggest accomplishments for the past year? Well, he has mastered speaking quite well...almost too well at time and only has a few letters he is lazy on, although some of that seems to be in words he already knew, and new words he is doing better. He also is completely potty trained, mastering that around 2.5 and then more recently at bedtime. He's become a good golfer, probably almost better than me (and now he has the clubs for it too thanks to daddy). He is an excellent farmer, and when we play farm now he refers to me as farmer mommy and him as farmer pete... He is finally learning his real name, but when you ask him what his name is he will always say Pete Van Oppelskeet first, but then will say Christopher Patrick Freese at other times. He is still sure that firetrucks are used to rescue kitties from the trees. He has adjusted quite well to his baby sister, and most of the time is very helpful with her...he still has a jealous side though. He can count to 15 and do all the letters...he is still working really hard on his colors. He is singing more songs all the time, but won't sit in Sunday school. He has a "bestest friend ever" named Aiden, and his best buddy is daddy. He also loves teasing her sister, almost as much as she likes teasing him back. He still is Pete, and really there is no one else like him, Ryan, Caitlyn, and I really can't imagine life without him.

On other notes, Caitlyn has started sitting on her own for a little bit...seems to get better at it all the time. She also is getting closer to getting up on all 4....right now she's at both arms and one leg or both legs way up high. She's been healthy all week, however Christopher overdid the birthday thing and ran a fever Wednesday night. Right now he is doing better and currently is back to chores with daddy. Tomorrow he was going to go with us to the golf show in Sioux Falls, but with him being sick, he is going to stay home with grandma and Caitlyn instead. Hope he doesn't mind!