Halloween 2009

Our little Super Heroes...





Kyla the mouseTrevor was Optimus Prime

Oh my God - they actually enjoyed walking up to strangers and grabbing candy...

Ethan needed a smaller Superman costume

Shawn was the batman

Carving pumpkins

Just in case...

Just in case anyone was worried, we are still alive. The boys are doing very well, high-maintenance, whiney, 16 months old, high-maintenance, talking, running, exploring, sucking the life out of their parents, but "well" over all.


Its been over 3 months since the last post for a reason - fortunately, not for anything significant or tragic, just for the simple fact that Ethan and Shawn were placed on earth to make a lot of people very, very happy, but also to test their parents. Perhaps God did not overlook the fact that Kristi was a giant brat growing up, or Andy was a very self-centered, arrogant teenager - our beautiful and merciful Lord and Savior has wrapped those vendettas into two cute, 24 lb. packages.

Ethan - 16 months



Shawn 16 Months

They are getting very big - Here is Ethan with Jenna

Shawn and Uncle Adam

Both boys love to read and draw. Shawn is the quiet worker - he will sit and tinker with something by himself or just sit and draw for a while...

Ethan on the other hand, lets just say he is his own play-by-play announcer. he is a chatter box, when he is in the crib, walking around, eating, reading, etc. the boys could not be more opposite.

They still love to play with each other - here is a weekly wrestling match - ethan is the bully:




We went to the zoo the other day, the boys had a lot of fun... too bad everything was identified as a "car" - but at least they growled when they saw the zebras..? The giraffes were too strange to illicit anything more than this look:






Just a reminder to everyone that Kristi somehow keeps it together through it all - through the whining, the fighting, the sleepless nights, the long work days, the non-relaxing weekends, even the 5am wakeup calls (ETHAN!!!) andy, on the other hand, is about ready to run away with the dog - twins are a lot of work. I love ya babe - you make adorable, high-maintenance babies...

14 months

The Video below is a glimpse at the great times we have watching the boys play together, however, every once in a while it gets a little weird, like the end of this video - it is up for interpretation, but I think that is an open mouth kiss. Boys - one day when you see this, you started out strange, its not your mom and I:

Mr. Ethan

Mr. Shawn
(I apologize for the haircut little man - mom made me do it...)

As rough as the last year has been - watching twins grow up is the most rewarding experience. They get so frustrated with each other, but the next minute, they are rolling and laughing with one another. sounds like their mom and dad... well, she does not "roll" with me anymore, but you get my point.

Can't seem to give up on posting...

just when I think I am out - they pull me back in. Everyone, excluding the grandmas, are bored of these blogs, I know - I am sorry. I am only interesting for the first few meetings or dates - it is a wonder how Kristi let us get this far?

Luckily, I do not have to be funny this time - the video is ready for world wide web - here is your sneak peek. Enjoy. The boys love to dance (thanks grammy) - Shawn gets his groove on while shouting "dance" (he gets his rhythm from his mother...) - press play on the video below:

Shawn - 14 months


Ethan - 14 months

One Year (already?/finally?)

The pictures say it all:

12 months later - we had the boys birthday, they started walking, Ethan's first word is "uh-oh" and Shawn signs "bottle" when he is hungry. Other than that, we are exhausted, we are still married, the dog is still alive, our house is a mess, we have occasional thoughts of running away or jamming a fisher price toy in our eye, but more often than not, we feel like the two luckiest people on the planet... (depending on the day)

Shawn enjoyed his first taste of Birthday Cake...

So did Ethan - we are working on patience with this one...

The boys enjoying their water table they received for their birthday

Ethan was a bit "thrilled" to receive a Nemo ride-on toy... Shawn got one too, but he needs to learn to pick up his feet when pushed from behind (Dad has rolled over Shawn's feet several times - he is still walking, so he can't be too hurt...)

This is Ethan and his BFF Jenna - they are like peas and carrots...

We took the boys to El Conquistador to play in the pools - this is proof that they are walking
Shawn had fun (trust me - that is a "fun" face)

Ethan did not

Ethan finally came around

Hello lens speed (shameless plug for Canon)

Shawn enjoyed being wrapped in a towel with Grandma more than the water

Its been a fun, long, crazy, no gray hair (yet) year. for those of you wondering, no, we are not having more - you can feel safe to sell your "little girl" stuff at the next garage sale, the rest of you can submit requests for outgrown boy/newborn stuff. Here's to walking, talking, barney, the wiggles and discipline...

Ethan 2 days old

Ethan 1 year old

Shawn 2 days old

Shawn 1 year old

Little Thief(s)

For those of you feeling bad for struggling businesses, large and small, just look at the photos and join us next time for dumb stories and forced humor about two crazy boys, their borderline moron dad and hypochondriac mother. Everyone else, a bit more sympathetic, please don't judge:

As we walked through a small party supply store at the mall, purchasing items for the boys upcoming bday - I noticed a hand jet out and grab an item from a nearby shelf. I was more impressed with the dexterity and made a mental note to either purchase said item or throw it on a random shelf at a later time (we all know where this is going...) - at checkout time, I noticed a 3" ladybug on the floor near the cash registers and thought, "oh, good, i dont have to find a place for that, he dropped it"... When we got to the car to unload the boys, we noticed there was the ladybug!! SHAWN STOLE A $5 PLUSH TOY!!! I am pretty sure it was Shawn - but we cannot figure out whom the mastermind was - it ended up under Ethan - so Shawn may have stashed it, or the item was handed off in a combined effort. We discovered the misdemeanor offense 30 minutes later at the car - and we were faced with a tough decision:

A) return the item to the store, which involved unpacking the boys from the car and walking ALL the way back to the store, facing unsaid ridicule from the 17 yr old behind the counter who would have cared less, or

B) take a photo of the item, joke about it and draw a giant red target on our backs for karma to aim at. Unpacking the boys was just too much work for an already exhausting saturday - and we needed something to write about...

Shame on Shawn, I will dillute his evening bottles for a few days and pick up Ethan first from their cribs a few mornings as punishment. He should get the message. Shame on him!!!

On a lighter note, the boys are almost 1 - its been the longest, shortest, most draining and most rewarding year of our lives.


Ethan took his first step (singular) April 26th - Shawn can stand and clap for a good 6 seconds - so he is not far behind.

They have tasted (and survived... kristi!) the sweet goodness of dirt, rocks and grass. (i am just building up their immune systems...)

Shawn loves to pick the dead moths from the sliding door tracks (tis the season...) - and unfortunately eat them - I have now started vacuuming the door tracks


Ethan has found the dog's door is a direct link to the outside world


The boys and their buddy Jayce - and an all you can eat salad bar for Shawn in the background (that's "grass" for you Cub fans and those of you that went to ASU)


The boys and their lady friend Emma