Let's Go Fly A Kite

This afternoon we decided to head to the beach for sunset. We took the kite (that we finally bought per Andrew's request) just in case it was windy; it was. So while we watched a beautiful sunset, Andrew got to fly his first real kite.

"Daddy don't let go. I don't want my kite to fly in the ocean."



Andrew had a blast! I enjoyed watching my boys play..especially since we were at the beach at sunset. (my favorite time of day)

Fort take 2

Drew wasn't satisfied with his first fort, so the very next night he and Andrew tried again. This time they used a few "tools" like broom handles and crutches to raise the roof. Drew was very pleased with his creation!

They wanted to "camp out" in their tent, so they did. They were both passed out and slept there all night!
**A new Andrew-ism is born***

Drew has this thing he says joking around about "bustin' your tooth." Andrew has picked up on this, so while he was in the tent Andrew looks at Drew and says "Don't make me get out this tent and bus' ya toof."

Daddy's Pooped Out!

Drew and Andrew have played hard for the past 4 days! Andrew is loving his new playmate and Drew is having just as much fun as the little man. They LOVE spending time together and it's a sight that I love to see! Drew has been doing the best he can when it comes to staying awake. His internal clock is still trying to adjust and he has been waking up at 4:30 every morning, not being able to go to sleep. Some days he'll get a nap when Andrew does, but for the most part, he goes to bed pretty early. Well today, Andrew (and I) took a long, late nap, not waking up until 5 pm. So I knew it would be a long night for Andrew.

After dinner we took a walk to the mailbox, while Andrew rode his new bike. (He's getting good at pedaling by the way). When we came back the boys built a huge fort in the living room while I cleaned up the dishes. Before I even had a chance to come in and check it out, this is how I found Drew....

...passed out IN the fort, with stickers on his cheeks and my floppy hat on his head! I think this picture is worth a thousand words...or at least one....PRICELESS!

Update: Drew has moved from the floor to the couch and Andrew is finally asleep in the fort too. He calls it "camping out." Guess I'll leave them to their camping!

Andrew's New Ride

Drew wanted to get Andrew a really special present to celebrate Daddy coming home. So we spent the past two days looking at bicycles. Andrew was very excited. We looked everywhere and finally at our last stop, ToysRus, we found the one Drew...er...I mean Andrew wanted!

We got home and Andrew waited patiently as Daddy finished putting it together.

Then he hopped on for the first time.
He had to check it out and see how this thing works...
Daddy showed him how to pedal.
Then we went outside to give it a whirl....but not until we put on our matching helmet and elbow pads. (Just a note...Drew and I never wore helmets when we were growing up!)
This has to be my favorite shot. Andrew thought it was really cool and only slightly scary to go down the dip in the sidewalk! (If you can't see his face, click the photo to enlarge it)
Hold on to your hats!
This is fun!
Andrew LOVES his new bike. When I was tucking him in tonight he said "Mama, I'm really excited." I said, "Oh yeah, why?" He said, "Cause I love my new bike."

*you'll also notice that Andrew got a haircut today! After warning Drew that this might be an unpleasant experience (because the last 3 were HORRIBLE)...Andrew was an angel...didn't make a peep! Guess we just needed Daddy around so Andrew could be a big boy!

Back to Chuck E. Cheese

Today Drew had to go into work for just a couple of hours. Andrew and I dropped him off and waited on him at our friend Kristina's house. When he was finished we decided to do lunch at Chuck E. Cheese. Andrew was excited to tell Daddy all about how we would play games, get tickets, and then get surprises. They had so much fun! We blew through 100 tokens in no time!

Here they are working on their aim...
Andrew scoring Daddy on some air hockey...

Riding the "jet rider"...

Shootin' some hoops...
It was fun. Andrew had 238 tickets and went home with some clay, stickers, and other little surprises.

The Boys Are Back In Town!

THE DEPLOYMENT IS OVER!!! Praise the Lord they're finally home!

We had a busy busy day. My friend, Julie was kind enough to let us spend the night with her on base, so we wouldn't have to leave Waianae so early. We had fun with her last night. We sat up way too late for our 4:30 am wake ups. But that's ok...the adrenaline kicked in pretty quickly. We got dressed and headed to the hangar a little after 6, expecting a 7:15 arrival. When we got there we learned that it would be closer to 8 when they landed. But after waiting 7 months, a few more minutes is a piece of cake!

This picture was taken yesterday. Andrew with his sign that reads: "Hip Hip Hooray! Daddy comes home today!"

All the kiddos were anxiously awaiting the return of the Daddies! Here's McKenzie with Tyler. Such a good big sis!
Tyler Turner....ADORABLE!
Addi keeping herself occupied.
Wyatt, are you ready for Daddy to come home? "Yah!"
Calvin says this whole waiting game is not much fun! Hurry Daddy, Hurry!
Kim and Tyler
Bailey is happy because her Daddy came home with the advanced party.
Before we knew it we could see the plane! Andrew spotted it first when it was WAY up in the sky. He was SO excited. He started screaming "Mommy I see Daddy's plane...Come on let's go!" This is where it finally sunk in that he was coming home. (so I cried)
Like I said...excited!
He was waiving his little flag as fast as he could. After this picture he said "Mommy hold me up so I can see!" So I did!
Here they come! This seemed like the longest taxi ever!
All the new mommies got to walk to the plane so those who had babies during the deployment could meet their children for the first time. It was so sweet! (so I cried again)
Nick carrying 2 of his 4 kiddos. He met Tyler for the first time today. Be sure to check out
Turner Mountain West to see all of Kim's pictures. After what seemed like forever, Drew finally made it off the plane. (Here...I cried again!)
After things settled down a bit, we posed for this pic.
Andrew is all smiles at Daddy, even though you can't see his face!
Daddy gave Andrew his Ugly Angel coin.
He wore it proudly while he downed a chocolate chip muffin.
After rounding up the bags, we headed HOME! Here are the signs waiting for Drew when he arrived.
Mom and Dad sent one from Alabama.
Silly boys.
Chiquita was excited to see Drew too!
The boys chillin' on the couch before heading up to play.
We are so glad to finally have Drew home. He's going to get a few days off at work, so we'll be doing lots of fun things together as a family. Stay tuned...I"ll update as soon as I can.

One Last Link

We're down to the last link in our paper chain! You know what that means....

Where a Kid Can Be a Kid!

Tonight our neighbors invited us to Chuck E. Cheese's. We had so much fun! (Thanks again guys for asking us to go along)

Andrew and Mackenzie waiting for the pizza!

Riding the mini-carousel.
Riding the exciting chair
playing feed the dog?
The best ride of the night was the roller coaster motion ride.
There was even a little screen so you can watch their faces. It was too fun!
At the end of the night Andrew helped feed his tickets in the ticket eater.
He was amazed!
On our way home we stopped at Menchie's for some frozen yogurt! Mmm! It was a great night out with friends. (Minus the one freak out incident when Mr. Cheese showed up at our table!) Guess not much has changed in the "character" department!