Kennywood 2010

This past weekend was BUSY to say the least! Our family hit up Kennywood (with all three boys in toe), a wedding (more on that in another post), and a couple softball games too. This past Friday, we hit up Kennywood with our entire brood. Last year, Cliff and I had a "date day" with Liam. But this year, we took Gabe and Landon too. There certainly were some trying moments courtesy of a nine hour day, no nap, and fighting crowds on a hot day. But all in all, I'm glad we toughed it out with our little men. I know they had fun... as you'll see in my slew of photos below. :)

Liam and Cliff on the Jack Rabbit... Liam's first real roller coaster.  Needless to say, our little daredevil LOVED it!  :)

That's Liam and Cliff on the Log Jammer.  Tried to get a closer pic, but it didn't turn out.  :(  Liam's face is priceless.  He was SO excited to ride this particular ride.  Last year, my little man waited in line only to get to the top and be too little to go on.  And wouldn't you know he remembered that!  Melted my heart that he was tall enough this year.  He told me at breakfast the day before we left that he would be able to ride the Log Jammer this year because "he was bigger now and has bigger muscles".  :)

My three little men on the motorcycles in Kiddie Land.  Gabe and Landon were especially excited for these!  Talked about riding them for days before we got to the park.

LOVE this pic of Laura and Ava!  Look at those cutie pies!  :)

Landon and Gabey riding the Whip in Kiddie Land.  I'm certain that you could hear Gabe belly laughing outside of the park... he LOVED it!  Look at the smiles on these two.  :)

Liam and Livy on the Whip and having a blast!

Cousins and friends (and Uncle Chuckie!) enjoying a run through the Sierra Mist area.  The mist was a great way to beat the heat and let the kiddos burn off some steam.

A sure sign of a good time.  Gabey was asleep before we even made it to our car!  Poor kid was pooped out from all the fun he had.  :)

I had to laugh when I sat down and thought about the rides that each boy enjoyed the most.  Liam (our resident daredevil) LOVED the roller coasters, rides with steep hills, rides that spin... anything really.  With one exception, Liam got off every single ride with a smile from ear to ear and asking to go on again.

Gabey Goo (our daredevil in training) LOVED the Whip, the kiddie Phantom roller coaster, and more or less any ride he was tall enough to get on.  Gabe would put his hands up on the rides with a smile plastered across his face.  And that infectious belly laugh of his had everyone within earshot laughing along with him.

Landon (our gentle giant) did enjoy the Whip (until he got smashed by Gabe), but his FAVORITE was the Merry Go Round.  He loved the horses and would "pet" them while he was riding.  I wish I would have taken a picture of his expression on some of the faster rides.  He was smiling (I think), but he would grit his teeth together like he was about to bite someone.  I think he was a bit unsure of anything faster than a horse going up and down.  :)  Each of their favorite rides was so in line with their personalities that it brought a smile to my face.

It was a lot of work taking three boys under three to the amusement park.  But thanks to the help of family and friends, everyone had a lot of fun.  Cliff grew up going to Kennywood every year, so it's nice to be able to share this tradition with our own boys.  I would imagine that it's a special moment for Cliff to take his boys on the very same rides that he enjoyed as a kid.  We're already looking forward to next year!!!

Happy Daddy's Day 2010

We had a busy Daddy's Day weekend this year!  It seemed like we were running from event to event all weekend long.  And with all three boys napping right now (my tired little men!), I get to blog about our fun!

Friday afternoon, we took a trip to Altoona, PA to see the Hershey Trojan's compete in the AAA State Championship game.  Cliff's great friend Scott coaches the varsity team that made it to the big game.  The boys were SOOO excited to go to a baseball game and had been talking about it for days.

The Trojan's lined up before the game.

LOVE this pic of Gabe (L) and Liam (R) waiting for the game to start.

Little man Landon engrossed in the game!

Landon's was especially excited to "go to the baseball game with Daddy".  He must have said this phrase 500 times a day leading up to the trip.  Maybe we have a future baseball player in our midst!  :)  The Trojan's unfortunately lost, but what an opportunity for Scott and his team.  Second in the state is still amazing!  The boys (and I mean all four of them!) had a great time.  And although we did resort to a number of food bribes, the boys were pretty well behaved.  It always melts my heart to see the boys excited in things that their daddy enjoys.  I know that he enjoys sharing his love of the game with them, and they sure to love spending time with him!  :)

Daddy and his boys.

Saturday was off to the dirt bike races.  No pics from this blistering hot day unfortunately, but the boys LOVE going to these events.  Our neighbor's two sons race dirt bikes at a track not far from our house.  Liam especially loves to go and cheer them on.  They are great boys who always take the time to play with my little ones, so I am always happy when we get to go and watch their events.  Liam got a chance to sit on a little quad and dirt bike which I'm sure was the highlight of his day.  That boy is a DAREDEVIL and he's teaching Gabe all the tricks of the trade.  Lord knows he'll be asking to start racing too in a couple of years.  No worries, they have a race just for beginners... dirt bikes equipped with training wheels.  I kid you not!

Sunday, Father's Day!!!  Cliff played a softball game early that morning and came home to open a present from the boys.  A framed pic of all of the boys in their superhero shirts, along with Cliff's baseball hats.  Daddy is their superhero you know!  :)  Liam, bless his heart, kept the picture a secret for two weeks.  Then, walking in with Cliff's present he says "Here daddy!  Open your picture of us!"  Oh buddy... you make me laugh!  Gabe and Landon were sure to wish daddy a "Happy Daddy Day" too!  Then it was off to Mom Mom and Pap Pap's for a cookout complete with a sprinkler to beat the heat!

Landon and Gabe helping Pap Pap with the sprinkler.  No water for these two... they helped man the hose!

Liam's turn!

Cliff and his one true love... grilling!  :)

The weekend wasn't complete without a trip with the boys to see daddy play softball.  After his second game we headed back to Chuckie and Dani's to grab some pizza and beers.  See?  I told you we had a busy Daddy's Day weekend!

Cliff, I hope that you had a great father's day weekend.  You deserve it!  Our boys absolutely LOVE their daddy.  Whether you guys are playing superhero's, cutting the grass, or playing catch, they adore being with you.  You are a great husband and an amazing father and I hope that you know how much you mean to all of us.  Boys, you are so very lucky to have such a great daddy who takes the time to play with you, teach you new things, and love on you.  Happy Father's Day Cliffy!!!  We love you!  :)

Webster's Dictionary... Hein Boys Edition

Our boys are pretty good speakers.  Liam especially has a great vocabulary and often surprises me how quickly he can learn a word and use it correctly.  Here's an example...

Me:  "Liam be careful walking along that ledge."
Liam:  "Don't fret mommy.  I can do it!"

Don't fret?  Since when did my three year old age by about fifty decades?!  Lately Gabe and Landon have really started to show of their vocab skills too.  They are always willing to try out a new word, often with some pretty funny results!  Here are some examples...

• MeNu (me-knew) - Landon's name for Liam.  Poor Liam, I hope this doesn't stick!
• Meum - Gabe's name for Liam.  Ironically, this is what Liam called himself until he was 2.5 years old!
• Gabey - Gabe and Landon's name for their blankies.  Don't know how this one started but it cracks me up!
• Titty - How Landon says kitty.  Hilarious right?  Even more hilarious is that Landon's cousin Laura said the same thing when she was little.
• Hosibal - How all three boys say hospital.
• Aside -  I hear this EVERY SINGLE morning from Gabe and Landon.  Their ready to get "outside" and play!
• Poscible - Otherwise know as a popsicle.  Something we have all the time in this Pittsburgh heat.
• Agoo - What Gabe says for "hold you".
• Munkin - Liam used to refer to muffin's this way.  Have to admit I was a little sad when he learned the right way to say this one.  How cute is munkin?!
• Liam's version of the song "Life Is A Highway" - "Life is a highway.  I wanna ride in your highway all night long."  LOVE this one.  Makes me laugh every time.  :)

I took a video of Gabe singing "Life Is A Highway" the other day and will have to get it posted to the blog.  Courtesy of the movie Cars, this is a new favorite song at our house.  Someday all three of our boys will grow out of these sayings and into the real deals.  But for the time being, I hope they never do...    :)

Strawberry Fesival

Can I just start by saying that it has been SO hot and humid these past few days?!?!  We are doing all we can to beat the heat and stay cool.  Anywho...

We braved the heat on Saturday and I took the boys (sans Cliff... what was I thinking?) to the Strawberry Festival at Trax Farms.  Poor Gabe was miserable from all the humidity and refused to get out of the stroller and do anything.  All that changed when we got ready to eat some lunch and strawberry desserts of course!  :)

"When are we hitting up the AC mom?"

Liam on the other hand had an absolute blast!  There was a little train that Liam would have rode at least 100 times if I let him.  Tried to get Gabe and Landon on, but no dice.  They were content to watch big bro Liam driving the choo-choo.  :)  We hit up the petting zoo where we feed the goats bottles of milk and cups of grain.  Liam jumped right into the pen (all by himself) and walked around feeding the goats.  He's growing up so fast that little guy.

Liam having a ball on the train.

Landon was thrilled to check out the animals at the petting zoo.  While Gabe sat chugging water in the stroller, Landon was petting the baby goats.  He's scared to death of his Aunt Dani and Uncle Chuckie's lab, but is willing to pet a goat.  Go figure!  And then he spotted it... a puppy.  Landon was busting out his duck run to get over there to check out the little puppy.  He got right down there and was talking away.  I had a smile from ear to ear!  If we ever add a puppy to this family it will be all Landon's doing.

Landon and his puppy.

All in all I think the boys had a great time.  Something different to do and new things to see.  I was EXHAUSTED from keeping the boys comfy in the sweltering heat and manning the trip solo.  But I'm so happy that I went.  Seeing their little smiles makes it all worthwhile.  :)

Nothing like balloons and sweet treats to end a fun day! (We had the balloons for approximately three minutes before all three were long gone.)

Babies no more...

Yes, that's right... Gabey and Landon are officially big boys with big boy beds!!!











With our vacation to Nags Head just a month away, Cliff and I were struggling with the best way to prepare them for sleeping outside a crib or pack 'n play. What better way than to get them in their big boy beds! So, I'll be honest and say that I was dreading this transition. But our big boys proved me wrong and took to their beds with flying colors!

Landon took to his bed instantly. (A thank you to Uncle Dave and Aunt Louise for passing the bed along!) The second our little animal lover saw the headboard, he was in love! Landon is certain that the animal on his headboard is a puppy, and I don't have the heart to correct him! The second Cliff had his bed built, Landon was laying in it like it was the only bed he's ever had. That night, we laid him down and our big boy didn't make a peep. Staying in his bed all night long... on the FIRST night!!! So proud of you little man and so happy that your "puppy bed" puts a smile on your face. :)

Little Gabey Goo was a bit more hesitant of his bed at first. "No bed Daddy. (While pointing his finger of course.) I kib (crib)." Ugh oh... this is going to be a problem! I could hear the endless hours of tears in the back of my head and feel a sleepless night upon us. But again, momma was proven wrong! Gabe cried for about ten minutes and then he too was off to sleep! Gabey you proved me wrong and I love you for it. I'm so proud of you big boy Gabey! :)

Having a sleep over in Landon's bed. :)

My how time flies...

Gabe and Landon, you are such big boys now!!! You are both SO proud of your new beds and that makes Mommy and Daddy SO proud of you! Next month you will be two years old... my how the time has flown by. In the picture above, we could count your age in days! I remember how little you two were, and now look at how you've grown! You are big, strong, healthy, happy, funny, and energetic little boys. Love you to the moon and back!!

My Last Year

Yesterday I turned 29... the last year before the dreaded 3-0!!! I couldn't have asked for a better day to kick off the last year of my 20's. That morning the boys gave me a super cute Vera Bradley purse and wallet. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it! :) Then came a card from Cliff. Inside were two tickets to see Daughtry that night! A birthday and a date night?!?! What more could a momma ask for! :)


Before we headed out to the concert, we had to get in some fun in the sun! A hot and muggy day in the 'Burgh calls for a dip in the kiddie pool and popsicles of course!

Gabe, Liam, and Landon trying to beat the heat.

I made brownies for the boys and let them "decorate" them with sprinkles and icing. Amazingly the boys stayed pretty clean... as did the floor. That has to be a first in this house! Equally amazing is the nap that all three boys took after the sugar coma of icing and brownies. Thank you boys for a couple of hours of quiet this afternoon. That is a gift in itself! :)

"Who needs sprinkles? This brownie with icing is calling my name!" ~ Landon (resident sweet tooth)

"Hmmm... after my first six taste tests, I think we need more sprinkles." ~ Gabey Goo

"What do you mean I can't put on any more sprinkles?" ~ Liam (notice the inch thick layer of sprinkles)

And then it was time for the concert!!! SO excited for Daughtry. They were AMAZING!!! Loved him ever since American Idol and haven't stopped since. Lifehouse (remember "Hanging By A Moment") opened and were equally as good. Best part of the night was getting to spend some time with my hubby. We were in dire need of a date night, and what a date night! Alone time with Cliff, dinner and drinks, and a concert! It doesn't get much better than this! :)

Cliff and I having fun and waiting on Daughtry.

Thank you to all of my boys (big and little) who made my birthday so great. Boys, I had so much fun playing in the pool and decorating brownies. Thank you for singing me "Happy Birthday" in your cute little voices. You always put a smile on my face. Cliff, thank you for the date night and concert. You are always so creative when it comes to gift giving. But mostly, thank you for planning a night where we could talk, eat, drink, and have fun. Love to all of my boys for such a great birthday!