One of the fancy toys received for Christmas was a Power Wheels truck.  The kids loved to sit in it and play with the real radio, but the sound of the tires and engine scared them silly at first, causing Lyla to jump out and Cole to get wide-eyed.  It took a week and some coercing, but they finally got used to it and now love their truck.  Mom REALLY loves their truck because now the backyard is FUN and I can start preparing dinner or anything else with them outside and safe.

Cole wanted to drive the truck but was just too timid.  We watched some youtube videos of others driving and that got him in the seat but he didn't want to hold the pedal down.  Finally, mom sat in the passenger side and pushed the petal while he drove.  I slowly moved his foot to the pedal and he realized, "HEY! This is easy and Fun!"  He loves changing the speed from slow to fast and really loves to drive backwards. Guess he is trying to be Mater. :-)

This was taken after church one week after Christmas.  The first thing the kids did when we got home was run in the backyard and hop in the truck.  Lyla is a first rate passenger too. She thinks all Cole's crazy driving is exciting, even if it does jostle her around.  Cole has even gone on the sidewalks and an ally road with his truck - his maneuvering is pretty good too!

Cole pretty much doesn't nap any longer, but there are days he needs one.  Problem is he fights against the idea of laying down with mom in bed or going to his room.  But if I can encourage him to even sit a minute or be still and silent, this is what inevitably occurs.

Sleeping at the top of the stairs waiting for mom to come out of her room.

Sleeping in front of the desk waiting for mom to write an email.  

Notice these two both occurred while "waiting" for mom.  This oddly enough is a new tactic I've found. If I tell him to be good and quiet for five minutes, then we will go outside or play a game, or something. This calms him and even to my surprise, enables him to fall fast asleep, usually in a matter of 2 or 3 minutes!

These are getting less often, but for a child that never fell asleep anywhere but his bed, these moments astound me and make me want to cuddle up right next to him too. :-)

Back in November, after Cars 2 came out on video, Rick thought up an ingenious family activity night.  He borrowed the projector and screen from church and blew up the air mattress in the living room. I made popcorn, the old fashioned way - stove top, and we enjoyed it even better than if we were in the theater.  We learned Lyla can eat almost an entire large bowl of popcorn all by herself and that Cole prefers to sit in front of the laptop screen rather than see it large.  Seriously, he ended up sitting in front of the ottoman where the laptop was playing the movie. haha!  But we knew he loved it because he requested the movie everyday pretty much until Christmas when his Aunts gave him his very own copy of Cars 2.

The kids are enjoying the cool days and the warm days this winter, but most fun for me is how they are interacting more and more.  Lyla loves to play in the dirt and mud right along with Cole using all the tractors and cars he has.  The road construction by our house has finished but now they are building new homes and Cole is definitely supervising those activities now.

Here are some pics of them playing by the cleared land for the new homes...

And yes, that is Lyla picking dirt out of her mouth with her dirty hands. hahahh!  She just HAD to see what it tasted like!

For the most part our days have been 50's or higher temps but we have a few days of 30's and 40's.  The kids thought the cold was fun at first but now Cole says to me after a few minutes, "Mom, it's FREEEEZING!  Let's go inSIDE!".  Hmmm...wonder who he learned that from???

One of the funniest and delightful things to watch them do is "play rough".  I think I've posted about this before.  Well, their new thing is that they want to be naked - sometimes with diapers, sometimes without, sometimes with underwear.  I can't believe they even want to because it is still chilly in the house without clothes!  Well, anyway, one day they were doing their thing when they decided to play chase and then play rough.  I happened to have the camera handy. I love to hear them laugh!

Sometimes Lyla takes a long nap and goes to bed later than Cole.  She really enjoys this time to play by herself or with mommy, but usually she spends it reading books or talking with her toys.  On one such night, since she was playing by herself, I started vacuuming the kitchen.  When I got to the living room, I found her like this.

Eating mini-marshmallows (who knew how she found them or reached them!), sitting in her toy story chair in front of the TV, chowing down.  Not a great picture, but boy was she HAPPY!

We had an absolutely fun Christmas. Cole and Lyla loved all the Christmas lights and went to see Santa so many times I lost count.  We watched a couple of Christmas movies on Netflix and they still ask to see them and question me as to where Santa went now.  We have a couple of Christ centered videos as well. We watched one for FHE the last Monday in November and another for FHE the first Monday in December.  The remainder of the month they repeatedly asked to watch them. Their favorite, of course, was the animated Nativity.  In fact, they asked to watch it again just yesterday. Lyla especially loved playing with the various baby Jesus figurines on the tree and in Nativity sets.

Some fun things we did closer to Christmas was to make gingerbread houses at Daddy's work:
(kids not pictured here but you get the idea)

A visit to Santa Town where you can enter a cowboy town to see Santa and Mrs. Claus in a log cabin, with one of the reindeer out front (a REAL reindeer mind you), have snow in TX fall on your head (from a machine of course), listen to live music, roast marshmallows, see TONS of lights, ride a pony and see sheep, bunnies, and llamas at the petting zoo as well as see other exotic animals and of course, chat with Sheriff Frostbite (aka Frosty).  There are some really cute shops there too.

My parents came to town for Christmas Eve.  We enjoyed a nice turkey dinner - my first attempt which thanks to a fabulous recipe and guidelines, turned out great.  Rick had made it before so I knew it was good.  We opened presents in the morning and then went to church.  Lyla was excited about everything in the stocking but fizzled out when it came to actually opening a present. I'm not sure she was feeling well.  Cole didn't mind that at all though - more presents for him to open!  He definitely enjoyed the unwrapping almost more than what was inside!

I was glad that our kids had fun especially glad that they remembered that it was Jesus' birthday.

A video of the kiddies enjoying the music at the mall...

Rick likes to listen to music and dance around with the kids (especially Lyla).  Well this particular morning, Lyla had decided she was NOT going to wear a diaper and she was going to wear Cole's underwear. (Granted she didn't have any of her own at this point. We went out and got her some, but she still prefers Cole's.  I kind of don't blame her since they fit so well and the panties just kind of lay there limp.)  She started bouncing to the music and clapping her hands.  Our little diva!

This adorable video was taken December 1st.  We always read to Cole and Lyla before bedtime. This time Cole decided he wanted to do it himself. He read the entire book and then started a second round so I grabbed the camera!

So much to catch up on so I'll just dive right in.  First, was Rick's birthday.  I try a new strawberry cake recipe every year trying to find "the one" that just thrills him. No, this year was not it.  Every year I think, "YES! This sounds awesome!"  But it never quite turns out how I think.  But the kids enjoyed blowing out the candles and licking off all the icing. Cole doesn't like us to actually cut him a piece of cake. He just want to like the icing off the entire thing.  Good thing he at least likes to use a candle or a spoon instead of his fingers!

For my birthday Rick treated me to a weekend in Dallas.  Kylene was kind enough to watch the kids for us as my mother dealt with some health issues at the time.  The kids really loved their time with her and now Lyla loves to randomly call out for "Kaka!" and of course they want her little doggie too.

About a week before Cole's third birthday he started having a hard time falling asleep for naps. So I would let him stay up and he was surprisingly delightful!  I actually enjoy our time alone and he is so loving, cuddly and quiet during that time that I think he loves it too.  Some days we "play school" and work through a preschool workbook and sometimes we play games together or trains. Since the time change he has needed a little nap on some days and I've found him to easily take that nap without any frustrations if he lays down with mommy in her bed. I have loved this too. Sometimes we sleep; sometimes he sleeps and then I get up and do some chores; and it seems this past week, I slept and Cole would get up and go play. haha!  Sweetest moment ever...I was falling asleep and Cole cuddled really close to me, kissed me on the forehead and said "Sleep Tight!" and then jumped off the bed to go play. Awww...

I always dreaded the days when Cole wouldn't nap, but it has really been a refreshing change. He cleaned windows with me last week.  He helps me pick up the house. I think he just enjoys the one on one time too since, more often than not, he turns into a teasing monster when Lyla wakes up.  (Obviously, not wanting to share mommy anymore.) I have been trying to think of more ways to give him some individuality rather than doing things with Lyla.  I've noticed him pull away in Kindermusik, not wanting to participate and the instructor noticed it too.  She said it could be he is ready for the next class (where you go without a parent) or that we just need to put him in a class without Lyla. So we are going to try taking him to a different class this week. We will see how it goes.  We just finished Hot Shots Soccer which he also did without his sister.  So now I'm trying to think of something else.  Any ideas???

We have been working with Cole on brushing his teeth. Some days he is excited and ready to go all out. Others, not so much.  I even bought that blue rinse he has to brush off hoping to get him excited.  That worked for two days.

But the big 3rd birthday was SO MUCH FUN!  It seemed to go on and on which made it all that more exciting for Cole. We celebrated at home the day of with a cake I put his new Thomas train on.  My parents were able to come for that.

He opened Grandpa and Grandma Poling's gifts that night too.

His birthday party for he and his little friends was the following Monday. I made a tiny green cake for Cole and green cupcakes for everyone else.

We had tables set up for the kids to color train pictures with crayons or watercolor.  We played pin the Face on Percy and had all of Cole's trains out for the kids to play with.  Oddly enough, Cole was playing with his oldest set here. He still loves this little $10 or $15 train and track we got at Walgreens.  He is the sentimental type. :-)

Lyla loved all the kids there and especially their little siblings.  She is a baby fanatic. She always wants to give them a pacifier and she even wraps them in HER blankie! WHOA!  I about died the first time I saw her give a baby her blanket to make them feel better.  Soooooo precious.  That's our Lyla! Oh yea, and she loved the cupcakes.

 

Some gifts didn't come by his party, but that was awesome to Cole because he kept getting gifts in the mail. He still is a little excited there might be a present for him when we get the mail. haha!

 

Now onto HALLOWEEN!

The kids had a blast. They had been prepped to dress up as characters for "SuperWhy" all month.  Cole was Wyatt (SuperWhy) and Lyla was Princess Pea (Princess Presto).  Their wands light up and play messages from the show.  Lyla's costume came with a crown too but it wouldn't stay on.   We went to a Trunk or Treat at our church Saturday night.  We didn't go out again on Halloween night, but instead gave away the candy they got on Saturday. Is that awful?  I didn't think so since they were actually thrilled to give it to others coming to our door. They thought it was great fun!

This guy was so happy to be fully dressed up and was prepping all night to say "Trick or Treat", but kind of chickened out at the actual Trunk or Treat. They both were kind of bewildered why people were giving them all this candy, but more so as to why everyone looked so funny!

 

Cole Saying Trick or Treat!

And Lyla's attempt...

The weather has cooled off and the kids love it. We started going to a new park a little further down from our house. Cole calls it the pink park because it has a pink slide. The tennis courts are right next to it and he has a real fascination with tennis. I've never seen him attempt to hit a ball and throw a ball longer than when he tries tennis. However he thinks he is supposed to hit the ball down, not out and across, so he gets a bit frustrated. I have a love-hate relationship with this particular park. We have lots of fun and the kids play really well there. The hate? Well, they also tend to get really dirty there. I don't know why. I think they just think that is what they should do at this park. So, so dirty. Cole picks up the rocks and dirt and puts it on Lyla and she does the same back to him. I tried to stop it and then I thought, "Really? That probably IS fun. Big deal, we take a bath."

Lyla is our little freedom child as well. She always takes her shoes off and loves to be without clothes too.  I think I solved the shoe problem by buying her lace-up keds that were big to give her growing room. (I think her other shoes were too small and they were velcro - WAY too simple for this girl to get off.)  But here she is in her glory....

And doing her balance beam routine....

They used to play a balance beam game at Music Makers (a free program mom's get together and do at our church on Friday mornings).  I'm guessing that's where she got the idea.

And lastly, the carnival was back in town this past week.  They brought some kiddie rides this time around so we took Cole and Lyla on Monday.  They had a little train that they rode a couple of times.

And Lyla wanted to ride the horses on the carousel. 

They both went down the tallest slide I have ever seen and BOTH loved it. 

Here is Lyla's reaction after the ride.  Her face looks scared but she is pointing to the slide and asking ot go again.  haha! She is totally going to be a thrill seeker.  Scared, but wants more!

So how is that for a month and a half update? I'm positive I missed so much of the cute little stuff they do. My apologies to all.  But here is a final video of Cole making a video before we closed our eyes for a nap.

Rick has Monday's off work which leaves the whole day usually for playtime with Daddy. It is so much fun. This past Monday Rick took the kids in the morning so I could clean house. It had been awhile since I had gotten the nitty gritty and I was so grateful.

Anyway, since 1970, our church has asked families to set aside Monday evenings for a "Family Home Evening" (FHE). It is a time to have fun together as well as an opportunity to teach the children about gospel principles and other important topics (like manners). Our family did it while we were growing up, and as we got older it became a time to actually ALL be together as well as coordinate schedules as everybody seemed to have so much going on. I always looked forward to FHE.

Honestly, we have been a little slow on starting it with our children because A) we already were spending the day together and B) I really was unfamiliar with how to teach young toddlers. But we both knew it was important that the gospel be taught in the home and not just in church. Obviously, it is something we do on a day to day basis in normal speaking, playing and correcting our children, but this little time set aside is still crucial. So for a while now we have been trying to actually plan a lesson and activity together and have been doing some fun things. I have also realized teaching toddlers about spiritual things really isn't that difficult and that I really enjoy it.  I love to see Cole and Lyla learning new things.  We do it in fun ways and they get excited.  Their favorite is catching fish and then learning about what is on the fish.  (i.e. sharing, helping, hitting, yelling, prayers, singing, etc.)

This weekend is general conference for the LDS church. It is a time when we are blessed to hear from the prophet, Thomas Monson, and the twelve apostles. So in preparation we brought out pictures of them so we could talk about who they are and why we would want to listen to what they say to us about living Christlike lives. They loved it and kept wanting to look at the pictures. Cole and Lyla really enjoy looking at pictures. They always ask me "Who is that?" whenever they see any pictures of anyone. Sometimes it is a random picture at the store and so I say "I don't know" or make up a name. This has been great since we have so much family living far away.

We then played "Follow the Leader" and sang the chorus to "Follow the Prophet" as we marched around the house. Cole and Lyla giggled the entire time and of course Daddy then turned it into a chase which made it even more fun.  For those that don't know the song, I found it on youtube (anything is there now).

Afterwards we had a birthday kickoff party.  Three of our birthdays are in October (Rick, me and then Cole) so we decided to start early.  We made funfetti cupcakes (Rick's favorite) and put candles on them so Lyla and Cole could practice blowing them out.  Cole was SUPER excited. As you can tell. Lyla caught on to the whole festivity pretty quickly and very much enjoyed her cupcake too.
 

So now mommy is very, VERY excited for birthdays.  Guess I should decide what kind of festivity we will have for Cole.  A friend of ours asked him what kind of cake he wanted and he said "Green and Yellow" and has been saying it since. Hmm...Pistachio cake?  I doubt he would like that.  He actually doesn't usually eat the cake anyway, just the icing.  So I'll be sure to pile on lots of green and yellow icing.  Maybe he is wanting a Percy Cake?  He is green and yellow!  Or maybe I should make it easy and just do something like below.  Cole is already excited for Christmas AND Easter and keeps adding things to his wishlist.  I just have to remember to add them whenever he tells me something else he likes.  (Wishlist links are kept permanently at the bottom of the blog page.)  Oh yes, and the reason he is excited for Easter is because last Easter he got a little Percy train in an egg and is hoping for another since he lost it.  He also got a Thomas the same way but hasn't lost that one.  This boy is a train and cars lover! Just like any other little three year old I suppose!