Our Little Picasso

First of all - please know that I did not create this blog to "brag" on my kiddos or my family. I really just wanted a fun place to journal, tell sometimes humorous stories and provide updates and new pics for the two or three people that might be interested! Hee hee! Seriously, I do not mean to brag about Preston, but he has truly become a talented artist and I just had to share a few of our favorite drawings from the past couple of months.





When Preston wakes up in the morning, as soon as he gets home from school, right up until it's time for bed - he is at the table drawing. It is his absolute favorite thing to do at home. He talks in the car about what he's going to draw next when we get home. He plans it out to the tiniest detail. Don't get me wrong - he is a boy and loves to play with his Star Wars toys, his cars, he loves to watch movies and of course play outside... but drawing is something that he is passionate about and will sit and do for hours.





He definitely got his talent for drawing from his Dad. I consider myself a pretty creative person, but can't draw to save my life... once Preston had his third birthday, he surpassed my drawing ability. But Erick is a pretty good artist. Preston loves to sit down with Erick and draw together. Like today when the weather was kind of yucky, that was what they did - all day.

Preston will have "phases" or "themes" for periods of time. He'll go where all he draws are forest animals, then he'll do ocean scenes and then snakes or Star Wars pictures. He'll get out books and try to copy pictures. He's even drawn me a picture of what he wants his room to look like in the new house! And he loves drawing pictures for his friends and family.



This picture above is one of my favorites. Preston loves Jesus and loves going to church to learn about His life. He knows more bible stories and facts than I do - I learn so much from him. This picture is of the crucifixion of course and the storm that God sent. He'll just sit down and start drawing stuff like this... pictures that tell a story. During Easter, he sat down and drew the story of Easter... he drew Jesus on a donkey with people holding palm branches, he drew the Last Supper, he drew Jesus praying in the garden, he drew the crucifixion and then finally he drew and tomb with a big boulder placed in front. He is a perfectionist and loves the details of life.



And of course, he loves SpongeBob - his inspiration here!

During Vacation Bible School this year the kids were asked to try to earn money around the house or put out a lemonade stand or something to earn money for our missions outreach project. Well, since we are in the apartment we couldn't do a lemonade stand - so Preston wanted to sell his artwork and began putting prices on his drawings so that he could sell them and raise money for the kids in Africa. This picture of the owl is a mere $10.00. Any takers? Just kidding!



This last picture is his latest "project". He taped together eight pieces of paper and created the Star Wars "Death Star". This one was too big to scan!

Thanks for letting me brag just a little bit on our budding artist!

Evan - 2 Months Old

"Don't you just want to kiss all over me?"

Well, we just can't complain about this new little boy - he is just the sweetest and best little baby you could ever ask for... just like his big brother. He is so happy and content and just melts your heart.

He is sleeping pretty good through the night - he'll do a 6-hour stretch and then another 2-3 hours after that. He still loves being tucked/swaddled really tightly in the blankets and being really warm and cozy. And he still loves his "Sleep Sheep" ocean sounds and the vibrating motion of his bassinet. Funny story... we actually try to put him down to sleep while he's still awake so he'll learn to put himself to sleep - but on occasion he'll of course fall to sleep right after a bottle and be completely OUT and SOUND asleep... (or so you'd think). Then as soon as you place him gently in his bassinet those eyes open wide up and the arms and feet kick out straight! He's playing a trick on us.... he's not really asleep, just faking it! It's hilarious, Erick will just go "D'oh", you were totally asleep - NOT!

Another thing he does when he's falling asleep is just grin and grin... his eyes will start rolling back (freaks Dad out!) and he'll just pass out, mouth gaping open and everything! So full, and warm, and happy. Oh, what a rough life.

He's a great eater and moved up to 6 oz. bottles a couple of weeks ago. At his two month check-up he was 11 lbs. and 13 oz. What a big boy! He is doing really great... and is always a big hit at the doctor's office. We've got another "Ladies Man" on our hands! Hee hee!

Well, as you can see he is really smiling all the time now. And he is making the cutest little "coo" and "gaa" noises too. When he gets really happy he starts wiggling his hands and feet out in front of him and just starts kicking like crazy and clapping his fingers together. It's really cute - you'd have to see it. (And his brother used to do the same thing too, which makes it really special.) I tried to get a picture of it below.



He's also pretty hilarious when he's "finished" with his bottle. So, he'll just be drinking away like nobody's business and he'll just have this look on his face like, "this is the best bottle, EVER"... Then, of course, we'll stop to burp him and then start to feed him again... well, you'll put that "best ever" bottle to his mouth and he'll give you the most horrible face - like saying, "that is disgusting, why would you try to feed me that?" And that means he's done! Ha!

Things that make him smile... changing his diaper if you can believe it! I think he likes being naked - hee hee! He also loves it when you kiss all over him.... he'll open his mouth when you kiss his cheek just like he's trying to kiss you back. Oh, sweetness.

Okay, you all know that Erick and I love quoting movies and TV... so here's another. There was this skit on Saturday Night Live years ago when Chris Kataan was on... he played Anotonio Banderas... a "sexy" Spanish man. Anyway, he would start to unbutton his shirt and they would tell him, "No, Antonio", "It's too sexy, too sexy." So, now when we change Evan's outfit we like to tell him - "No, Evan - too sexy, too sexy". It gets a pretty big smile from him! Yep, he's stuck with us and our crazy shenanigans.

And I can't forget to say how much Preston is still adoring his baby brother. He helps me out so much and calls Evan his "sweet little Angel". Thanks big brother, Preston!

Love to All.

Tucker The Diva

Yes, Tucker is a boy - but he is definitely our Diva of the family.

As you can see, he is laying on our pillows on the couch - which yes, we let him do... why, you say? Because he wouldn't dare be caught laying just on the nice soft, leather couch - oh, no. The couch isn't good enough - it's apparently not soft enough. It would hurt his delicate skin. So he will knock the pillows down to lay on them and then push them around and circle until they are in the perfect resting position for him. And if a blanket is around he will move it to where he wants it and use it too! And when he's on the bed with you... if you even think about getting up he is immediately on your pillow... again, the bed itself is not suitable.

Oh, and don't even think of taking him outside when it's raining... this tooshie doesn't touch wet grass. I mean, when it's dry grass we've got to circle an area for an hour to find the best place to go... don't expect him to do his "private business" when the grass is wet! We wouldn't think of it, Diva Tucker!

Kisses from Tuckie - Tuck!

Getting So Big

Evan is getting so big, so quick. We are officially in #1 diapers now (no more newborn) and we're starting to outgrow our Newborn clothes too... sniffle, sniffle. I'm trying to take a picture of him once a month in his carseat to show how much he has grown... looking at this picture above compared to the day he was brought home in this car seat - he looks huge!

Here are some new pics of the growing little man! He is 2 months old today!

Please excuse my little captions under the photos, just my silly thoughts on what Evan must be thinking...



"Did you say something?"



"Ain't life good?"



My three boys... little, not so little anymore, and all grown-up!



"I Love My Daddy."



"You're so funny, Daddy."



"Oh, I love Mommy and Daddy's BIG bed!"



"Do you mind, I'm sleeping?" When Evan is really asleep, he's OUT. A tornado could come through the room and he wouldn't budge.



"Hmmm..... I'm not so sure about that, Daddy."

Say What?

So, as all of you parents know - some pretty silly things come out of the mouth of a six year old... and Preston has had us laughing on a few of his observations and expressions here lately! Here are just a couple that might make you chuckle.

I was up at Preston's school as a "guest reader" for the morning last week. They were all sitting on the floor amazed with my storytelling (not really), but Preston was obviously really into listening (oh, he does know how to listen).... Anyway, one of his friends was messing with him and pushing him in the back trying to get his attention. So, Preston turned around and said, "Stop It! You're ignoring me!" It was all I could do not to laugh; he surely meant - "You're annoying me!" Too funny!

Okay, this one is not for the faint of heart or stomach or politically correct! Hee hee! Be forewarned. I'd like to start this one out with a little joke... YOU MIGHT BE A REDNECK IF... you've ever relieved yourself on the side of your house! Yep, we did it - okay, just Preston did it. What little boy hasn't had to "go" while he was outside. Once the "pee pee" dance starts, you've got to find a place. We were out looking at the house, so Erick just took him around to the back and while Preston was "relieving" himself, he said to Erick "Dad, my pee smells like Diet Coke" What? Diet Coke? Hmmmm.... this coming from a child that has never had a Diet Coke or smelled a Diet Coke - but apparently, if Diet Coke has a smell, then this is it. See if you can ever drink another Diet Coke the same way again??? Sorry! Hee hee!

And I'll end it with a sweet one. Evan was asleep in his bassinet the other morning and Preston went in to check on him. He came out and told me, "Evan is so sweet; he looks like the Baby Jesus sleeping." Awwww.....

A Christmas Job

So I'm not getting to do any Christmas decorating at our house this year. One, because there is absolutely no room to put anything else in this apartment, and two, because all of our Christmas decorations are in storage. Ugh!

So I was excited to get a call from my decorating partner saying that she had a Christmas decorating job for us - whoo hoo! I was able to get my fix! This is actually a real tree, so we stayed with light Christmas ornaments so it wouldn't be weighed down. It was a lot of fun, as always, to decorate with Kim. We also decorated this same house for a huge Halloween party last year - you know I loved that. They are a sweet family and wanted me to leave Evan with them for the night... they have 3 girls! Ha ha!

And although I'm not ready to tackle any big faux finish jobs right now, this was a nice little treat! Thanks for always thinking of me, Kim.

My Birthday

Well, I'll admit - my birthday is never really all that exciting. No party at Pump It Up! for me... although I think that would be a BLAST to have an adult party there - hey, I'll admit, I still enjoy jumping in a bounce house! Seriously, I did enjoy a yummy lunch at one of my favorite restaurants - Jin Beh... yummy, fried rice!

I do have to share a sweet story though. So the day before my birthday Preston and Erick were at Home Depot doing the Kids' Home Depot Day and after they got done with their project Preston walked around the store and picked out all these paint and tile samples and brochures. Then he came home and wrapped them in tin foil and told me not to look, they were my birthday "surprise". Then AS SOON, and I mean, AS SOON, as he woke up the next morning - he ran in the bedroom to tell me a big Happy Birthday and gave me my gift... he said "Mom, these are to help you choose all the stuff for the house". So thoughtful, thank you Preston. You made Mommy's birthday!

And thank you to our church Life Group for the birthday song and cake! That was a great way to spend my birthday evening.

Another year older - oh, well.

Dear Santa

So does Stonebriar have the best Santa or what??? He is just so great... not only does he look perfect - with rosey cheeks and a button nose, but he is just the sweetest Santa. I bet he's a great Grandpa.

So, Preston is an old pro and loves going to see Santa every year. This year he asked him for Star Wars toys. He was going to ask him for specifically a "four legged walker" from Star Wars, but I personally know that "Santa" is having a hard time finding that toy, so I advised that maybe he should just say "Star Wars" toys just in case. Oh, please... "Santa", find the "four legged walker"!!! Hee hee!

Preston was so excited that Evan was going to see Santa for the first time... and can you see the excitement on Evan's face? He he! As usual, he slept through another monumentous occasion - but he did get to sit on Santa's lap. Can you see that he's pulling on Santa's beard? Ow! Santa didn't care a bit - he said all I care about is a good picture for you. Looking at this picture, I'm imagining Evan is grabbing on to his beard saying "Listen hear man, bring me the good stuff, or else!" Seriously, it was really sweet and Santa even suggested the sweet picture below where he and Evan have fallen asleep reading... so cute. And of course, Evan was already asleep... so we had full cooperaton.

We love you Santa - you make Christmas time so fun and exciting! But let's all remember the reason for the season - the birth of Jesus Christ - and let's celebrate His coming and the blessings He has bestowed upon all of us.

Ho Ho Ho, Merry Christmas!

Caught A Grin

Evan is just smiling all the time now... and I happened to have the camera handy for this cute face! Me, with the camera, Nah???

Thanksgiving 2007

What a cute little scarecrow - I don't think he could scare off anything!

I have a dear friend that makes these great cards for me... she is awesome, thank you Lisha! Her website is on the bottom right side of the blog - http://www.swaknotes.com/. Check her website out or e-mail her if you ever want cute personalized notecards - they make a great gift!

Now on to Evan's first Thanksgiving...

I love Thanksgiving - I think mainly because I get to see my family, which is an unfortunate rare thing. We always have a great time eating all day and visiting.

Preston LOVES Thanksgiving because he gets to see his cousins. He adores his cousin, Caden, and they get to play all day. It's all Preston can talk about - "When is Caden getting here?". Caden is a little older than Preston, so I'm sure Preston wears him out! They are very sweet together though - below is pic of Preston with some of his cousins. We love you guys! And I'm sure Evan would have enjoyed playing with his cousins... but again, the boy was snoozing the whole day! You could pass him round and round and still, asleep.

We also got pics of me and the boys with my Dad, "Popee". I wish we saw you more Popee!

And another pic is me and the boys with all the ladies - including my two cousins, my aunt and grandmother. I've always been really close to these ladies growing up and I love spending time with all of them.... and speaking of that...

So after the boys are gone or off playing, then the girls get down to business. We start going through all the newspaper store ads for sales happening on Black Friday. Oh yes, we are some of the lunatics that are up and at the stores at 5:00am or earlier. We woke up at 3:00am and were out the door by 4:00am (brrrrr... it was cold this year) - we stopped by our usual breakfast restaurant (Whataburger) to grab some fuel for the morning and then we were off to shop all day! It is a great tradition and we've been doing it ever since I can remember... we call ourselves the "Boo-Ya Sisterhood Shopping Club". I keep saying I'm going to make us t-shirts to wear, maybe next year! Can't wait til next year girls!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Give thanks to the Lord, for He is GOOD. I am thankful for so many things in my life - for my wonderful family, great friends, mine and my family's health and for the many blessings that God has given us. We are not worthy.

As my friends, please be sure to slap me if you ever see me taking my life for granted!

And now that Thanksgiving is over... it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Love to all,

Baby In A Bowl

So I saw this cute picture where they put a teeny weeny little sleeping baby in a bowl - it was so cute! And well, I waited a little too long for him to stay asleep stripped naked, but thought I'd give the idea a try! So, here's our little man - in a bowl! He's still pretty teeny - and we think, pretty darn cute. This is Evan at 1 month old! And I'm sure he's saying to himself, "Really, mom - you put me in a bowl - what am I, fruit?"

What a sweet boy we have in Evan, he is just the best addition to our family and we all just adore him. Preston is a helpful and caring big brother and we are having so much fun! Only need right now - SLEEP! Ha!

A Happy Boy

We got our first real smile from Evan today! He had been right there on the verge of it for several days - lots of excited looks with that little corner of the mouth up... but today was a big grin! It took mom being pretty goofy to get it, so I didn't have the camera out - but we'll post a pic of a smile soon. He's also starting to make all the cute baby noises - all the "coos" and "gaas". He is becoming a really active listener and LOVES it when his big brother talks to him.

The little expressions he makes are so cute and a lot like Preston. He is a noisy eater just like Preston was - he just snorts, grunts and breathes heavily all the way through his bottles. We need to get it on video; it's quite the spectacle. He really doesn't cry all that much - most of the time he'll let you know he needs something with just a little "er" we call it. Every minute or so you'll hear him make a little "er" - then if you don't come and attend to him he'll start to get upset - but he gives you fair warning! It's pretty funny. And Preston is always quick to run in and tend to him when he hears the "er". He takes great delight and pride when he can help his brother!

You know, I didn't see it much in the beginning - but Evan's got a reddish tint to his hair actually - could we have a red head on our hands?!? Probably not! (I wasn't even a red head until I was 12 or so.) I'm sure he'll lose all of his fine baby hair just like Preston did and we'll get a whole new color! Right now it's kind of a light brown/reddish color though. Preston's was actually really dark when he was born and then he lost all that and it came back a lighter brown, then that actually got really thin and he got really blonde. So, who knows! Evan does have the blue eyes right now - I hope he keeps those! Preston has such beautiful blue eyes.

We're really excited about our first Christmas coming up with Evan. Although we're not sure if we'll have room in the apartment for a tree! Preston asked - then where will Santa put the presents?!? Ha! I'm sure he'll find a spot. Then he said, but there's no chimney! I'm sure he'll find a way in! Hee hee! Happy Thanksgiving to everyone; thank you for blessing our lives.

Brotherly Love

So In Love...

At Work With Daddy

One of Preston's favorite things to do is go to the office with Daddy! He loves playing on the computer and calculators and hanging out with Dad. I know he'll have great memories of "working with Daddy". Well, Evan made his first trip to Daddy's office today. We went and had lunch at Luby's with Daddy and then Evan had lunch in Daddy's office - yummy! Of course, all of the ladies in Erick's office were so anxious to meet the little man - he stole a few billable minutes from the office!

Nanny's 82nd Birthday

Evan got to meet his Great Grandmother (Nanny) today! We celebrated her 82nd birthday!

Unfortunately Nanny has really had some health problems this year and is in a rehabilitation/therapy facility right now... but she is still sharp as a tack and loved meeting Evan. She's battled cancer again this year and is finally done with chemo and radiation. But during the course of treatment she got a bad infection and had to be hospitalized and then ended up suffering a couple of strokes while she was in the hospital. The main thing that it's all affected is her ability to see. She's lost so much of her sight, so that makes it really hard for her to get around. I actually wasn't able to spend hardly any time with her when I was pregnant because of the infection and radiation (they wouldn't allow it) - so it was great to see her and have her hold Evan for the first time. We love our Nanny and pray that her health will continue to improve every day.

And Evan also got to meet his Great Aunt Linda, Great Uncle Lee and some of his cousins too. We are looking forward to a nice Thanksgiving with my family next week! We'll eat and hang out all day and then all the ladies will spend the night and wake at 4:00am for shopping all day on Friday - we call it the "Boo Ya Sisterhood Shopping Club" and we've been doing it for as long as I can remember!

Evan, 1 month

"Do You Come Here Often?"

Our God Parents

Evan got to meet his God Father, Todd, (oooohhhh.... The God Father) today. Hee hee! Of course, he's already met his God Mother, Susan - she was there for his arrival! These are the two people that we trust the most in the whole world with our two sons. Aunt Susan and Uncle Todd will be a huge part of their lives and we love them very much! Thank you both for all that you do for us - you are our family.

Our Spa Baby

Okay, so the spa consists of a plastic tub filled with warm water... but it is Evan's FAVORITE thing. He absolutely loves his baths. He just sinks right down into the water when you poor the warm water over him.... oh, it's good to be pampered! And he is so relaxed when you wrap him up in the soft towel; he just gets this very content look on his face and enjoys the snuggles. We love a clean baby!

This picture was taken this morning - so this is our little man at 4 weeks old! Where does the time go? Part of me feels like WOW - a month already, and then another part thinks back to the day he was born, and it seems like forever ago! Oh, my sweet little Evan... I'm feeling a little "sappy"... gotta go!

The Ladies Man

No picture for this entry... just wanted to share some of the hilarious things that have been coming from our big Kindergartner lately!

Apparently, he is our little ladies man at school. We're in the car the other day and I asked him who was his best friend at school? I was pretty sure it was this kiddo named Aiden because he's come home with these sweet cards that Aiden has made him with his phone number and pictures of them playing together and on the pictures he writes "BFF" ("Best Friends Forever" for us lame parents). Is that so funny or what?!? Well, so after Preston told me that his best friend was Aiden (and Chase, and Trent, and Mason, and Jacob), then he proceeded to tell me and Erick that he had a girlfriend. We asked her name and he said - "Madison". "Oh, really," we said. Yes, and "I just adore her" Preston added. It was all Erick and I could do to hold in the laughter - and for me a few tears, cause it was just so sweet! He told me that at school he sits in between Madison and another girl - the technical term that my son used for this was that he was "girl trapped". That's a new one.... you go Ladies Man! We are in trouble with those big blue eyes in a few years...

Fall Soccer 2007

Boo hoo - we had our last soccer game this past Saturday! What a beautiful season - not a single rain-out game. Our last game, and the Vipers smoked them like 10-0 (not that we keep score or anything, it's still considered non-competitive)! Go Vipers!

We weren't so sure about having to switch to a new team for the Fall after being on the same great soccer team for the last three seasons. We thought we couldn't be that lucky again to get a great coach and great group of boys... but we weren't wrong. We had the best time this season on the Vipers and Preston just beamed all season. Preston LOVES soccer! These boys are really starting to learn the game and PLAY it! It's an awesome thing to watch and cheer for all of them! And all the parents are great and so much fun - we all really get into it.




As you can see from the pictures of Preston - scoring a goal is pretty exciting stuff! The boys really worked as a team this season!

One funny (my eyes were watering I laughed so hard) story from Preston's last game. So it's the last quarter and Preston's running the ball down for a goal - and SCORE! Preston gets a great goal - whoo hoo!! We all cheered - go Preston. Anyway, then the ref, as they always do, put his hand straight out and pointed to the Vipers side of the field to signify "goal point"... you know, like in football - it makes it official when the ref calls it. Anyway, Preston was so excited running back from the goal that he saw the ref's hand out and immediately slapped him the biggest "High 5" you've ever seen! He totally thought the ref's hand was there for just that reason and Preston was ready to celebrate. It was the cutest and funniest thing ever! Erick and I were rolling. Preston is such a fun-loving and free-spirited kid - he could have fun anywhere and he celebrates life. We adore this about him and hope that he continues to be our family goofball!





And here's Preston with his coach, Coach Robert. He's one of the Dads of course, and he does a fantastic job coaching the boys. Thank you Coach Robert for all the work! And thanks for the great end of season party where the boys got their trophies, team pictures, ate pizza and played liked boys do on the playground!

We're looking forward to many more seasons of soccer, as long as Preston is up for it!

The Announcement

I was so excited to get out Evan's official announcements today! Enjoy these sweet pictures of our newest gift from God and thank you to everyone for sharing in our joy!

Love and Blessings.

"I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of Him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord." 1 Samuel 1:27-28

Our Little Pumpkin... Evan Wilson Cutler