Christmas!

Christmas was good! Here is the recap... My grandpa, auntie, Lala, my Uncles Joe & Paul, and my cousins Gunnar and Spencer were all here to visit me. We had so much fun, ate way too much though. (or at least that what mom keeps saying) We opened presents and I got lots of really fun cool toys. I think I may have opened a few presnts that weren't mine as well, I just got caught up in ripping through the paper. Ha!

Santa also stopped by my house, he was riding on a fire truck...I couldn't beleive it. Then he called me on the phone to make sure I was being a good boy. Of course I was! Then he left me presents and stuffed my stalking. BUT the true meaning of Christmas is the birth of Jesus & what he has done for us.

We sure missed Grandma, but we remember her and all the love she gave us. We continue on in the traditions she left for us. We know she is smiling down on us.


The whole clan at Christmas eve church service.


All the boys in our Christmas blazers and sweaters from Grandpa.


Yes this is the best picture we can get.


Getting this picture may have been difficult due to one three year old...I won't mention any names.



Unwrapping presents is tiring!

Cabin Fever...

is driving me crazy!!! Along with getting a package or two in the mail daily, which by the way I am told I can't open until Christmas. I can't STAND the suspense. I guess I am not paitent or something? What does patient mean again?

Well I have a few exciting things coming up in the next two weeks, my church music program, my school program, and then grandpa & my aunts, uncles and cousins are coming. I can hardly wait, I think my excitment might be driving my mom crazy!

Weekend Recap

This weekend was a blast. Dad and I got to go to watch the Botno Lumberjacks play hockey! They won, obviously because they are awesome. I even got to go meet the coach Ruby because I have VIP status, or something like that. He gave me a really cool hockey stick and dad an official uniform. I play hockey alot now, although mom and dad keep saying something about a penelty box when I check & high stick?!?

Sunday moms friend Marit & her dad Dean, sister Maija & brother Mic came over for breakfast. They were all wearing green and gold. Must be Packers fans or something. he he

All in all it was a very fun weekend. As for Macs...well he and mom just went to Walmart & oh he is trying to crawl. He must see me running around like a crazy man & wants to join in.

Macs is eating...

real food now! He is growing so fast. My mom and dad keep warning me that he is going to grow up to be bigger then me & then I better watch out. Don't know what that means, he is just a baby. I gues I'll wait and see.



I was at Grandpas house for Thanksgiving and it snowed, and because I am so big Grandpa asked if I would help him shovel.

Finally!

Sorry for the delay, there were just so many pictures to pick from I couldn't decide which to post.

I loved spending time at the beach, I was usually out there by sunrise & after building about 50 sand casteles with dad, we would then head into the pool to cool off. Ahhh the life!
Behind me is the Villa we stayed in. It was pretty awesome, we had our own room and bathroom & really nice people who cooked really yummy Jamaician food for us.

I do have to admit it was really really HOT there, that is why we always had our shirts off & trunks on.

Well it is official...we are NOT in jamaica any more because there is 7 inches of snow in my drive way. The snow is pretty fun though too!

Jamaican Me Crazy!

Just wanted to let everyone know we are back from Jamaica...not because I want to be! I woke up this morning and the first words out of my mouth were "Mommy I miss Jamaica! I want to go back!" I know that is what Macs was thinking too, although he didn't like the heat and sun as much as me.

Pictures will be up as soon as my mom and dad have the energy to upload them. Geez are they tired or something? They said something about traveling all day yesterday and not getting home until 4 AM? I don't know why they didn't just sleep on the plane and in the car like Macs and I?

Birthday, Grandpa, & Pumpkin Patch...

...all in one weekend! I had so much fun last weekend, not only did I turn the big THREE, but my grandpa was here to spoil me, play with me and take me to the pumpkin patch. He brought me lots of fun presents, but the best present of all was him :) We celebrated my birthday on Saturday by going to the pumpkin patch & apple orchard, I got to pick out 2 pumpkins and pick lots of apples. Then we came home and ordered pineapple pizza and ate cupcakes. I wish grandpa was here every day!

My brother Macs is growing so big, he also had a birthday...4 months!

My dad will return soon from his trip around the world. I can't wait to see him!

T-R-O-U-B-L-E

Today me and my friend will hatched a plan for mischief. It might take us a few years to execute but with grins like this you know it has to be good. Will and I play together every week and go to school together or Wednesdays. Lots of time to make a master plan.

Gifts from the Mailman (or Postman I called him in Wales)

Check out the present I got from my Aunt Eileen and Harold. What's great about getting a new baby brother is that some people know that I feel left out (at least that's what I pretend). So I get sympathy presents for doing nothing! Pretty sweet I think.

Thank you!

Quarry Quest

Today me and my friend Nathan went to Quarry Quest. Quarry Quest is a day when area heavy equipment owners come to the quarry and allow kids to actually ride on the big machines! This picture is Nathan and I checking out the situation before we get on the cranes.

This picture is me showing Nathan which crane I want to ride on.

Here is me driving the crane. My hard hat was a little big, as you can see.

Here is my friend Nathan in a big digger. I waited for almost an hour in line to get on the digger but then I got a little scared when I was supposed to get in. I guess I didn't want to ride it.

After the diggers we went to grab a bite to eat. As you can see the Cheetos and the Doritos got a little out of control. Good thing they had napkins.

The last official thing we did was ride on a dump truck for a quarry tour. It was really awesome. Here is a picture of me and dad on the back of dump truck. The truck was full of sand that we used as a seat!

Here's a picture of the truck so you can get an idea of what I was riding around in.

On the way to and from the quarry we would take school buses from the local high school. Riding the school bus might have been the best part of the day! I can't wait for school. I can't wait for next year.

Off to School

This week I started school. I am such a big boy. I was so excited! I even get to bring my lunch, so I had to go shopping for a lunch box. I picked out the Dora one because she is my favorite. So at school we do all sorts of big boy stuff, learn about shapes, colors and numbers, read Bible stories, and have recess outside. I go to school with my friend Will, so that is really fun too. Well I should sign off now becuase I have homework to do.

Getting Big!

Grandpa has an apple trees and lucky for me they are right at my level and easy to pick. For some reason no one else eats the apples, I don't know why?

My brother Macs is getting bigger by the day. Mom says he is growing out of all his clothes so fast, but he still seems little to me.

Today and yesterday I went to the park and played with my friends Jaxon and Keaten. We run, jump and fall all around the park. They are as crazy as me!

PB & J

I am a really big fan of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for breakfast in the morning. I especially like toast in the morning, not toasted. When I am waiting for the toast to pop I usually sample the peanut butter to make sure it is fresh. By the time the toast pops I am already too full to eat anything else and I try to leave. Mom and Dad don't like this too much. Maybe we should get a faster toaster?

At Fenway

Dad went to Fenway Park in Boston last week. He took this video of David Ortiz hitting his second home run of the night with his digital camera. The picture wasn't great but it gives a pretty good idea of the seats and the atmosphere. The only seats available were standing room only which is why I can't understand why Dad was complaining about his back...

Monkey Around

Here's a picture of me playing in the yard. Mom got a new camera to start her photography business. I decided I should be the model for the photos and was telling mom which poses to take pictures of me in.

Here's a picture of me standing on my slide. I insisted that mom take a picture of me. This picture combines my good looks with my attitude of always being a little bit dangerous. I always take the approach and consider whether there is a chance I might not get hurt. I this chance exists I take it.

People have been really good about not forgetting about me when they bring over presents for Macsen. The neighbor lady brought me over this dinosaur. I even took it to church on Sunday to show my friends. I call him Coco.

Tiny Macs

Video of Macsen and his little parts.

Jesus Loves Me

A classic rendition of the classic with a lot breaks to sip my coffee.

Slacker!

I know, I know I have been slacking on the blog posts. My cousins and friends have been doing a great job of keeping their blogs up, Mom and Dad keep saying somthing about not having any time. What ever! So we are gearing up for our big trip to North Dakota! I talk about it every day, I just can't wait. Although someone said somthing about a 14 hour car ride, don't really know what that means?!?

Macs is still a great little brother, I am trying to teach him to jump off the couch and run circles around the house, but I think he is a slow learner. All he does is sleep! Someday he'll get the hang of being a wild and crazy boy like me. Well I am off to gymnastics with my dad.
Brenden OUT

Nana Calls Me Precious...

Mommy and I were discussing Nana and Papa the other day and I remembered something that Nana always says to me.

I said, "Nana calls me precious."

Then I said, "Nana calls Papa, Rick!"

Mommy thought it was pretty funny and couldn't stop laughing. I don't get it.

Weekend

We took it pretty easy this weekend. The weather was about perfect. Mid-seventies with cool nights and we got to keep the windows open all day. Church was really fun on Sunday. Before mom and dad used to have to convince me to go in but now I just run right into class straight from the parking lot to the classroom. I have a bunch of friends too.

Macsen doesn't really go to Sunday school yet but I think he will pretty soon.

My uncle Kevin's birthday was on Sunday, Happy Birthday!

Strategic Washcloth

Here's a picture of Macs in his first bath. He doesn't seem to love baths as much as me. Actually I hate getting in the bath but once I am in I have a really good time.

Here's a picture of Macs out of the bath and fully clothed. He's a little happier here. He looks like he is playing the guitar! Can you see my feet in the photo?

Which is Which?

I found some photos of me from a couple years ago. Can you tell which one is me and which one is Macs? As a hint I am the cuter one I am sure! Just kidding Macs!

Answer: I (Brenden) am the one on the bottom.

Me and My Bro

Here's me and Macs hanging out on the floor. Macs can usually keep my attention for a few minutes. He doesn't do very much do sometimes I need to find other things to do. Mom says I'm a real help with changing Macs' diaper because I run and get the diapers and bring them to mom. Sometimes I even bring the wipes.

I am really excited for the weekend. That means dad doesn't have to go to work for two whole days!

Brenden vs. the Pillows

Here's a video I put together with dad of me tackling a bunch of pillows. Fans of HNIC will love the music!

Warning: Hilarious



PS - Blogger still isn't allowing titles. Annoying.

Garden Walk

Well this is more like a garden stand. I'd walk but I would probably step on a bunch of flowers and plants and then I would get in trouble. These are some more pictures from outside of our church.

Today is a scorcher (93 F) but the humidity isn't too bad right now. Sounds like the rest of the continent is in a heat wave as well so I can't complain but I wish I got play outside longer.

The icecream man drove by today and I got a popsickle, even though I had popsickles in the fridge.

Still Sleepy and Just a Little Bit Mad

Macsen continues to spend a lot of time sleeping. The only time he really gets upset now is when he is hungry... which is most of the time he is awake. Macsen also likes to go for walks just like me. Yesterday a doe and her fawn ran out from behind our house and dad and I chased him on our bike. They were a little too fast for us, at least for dad anyway. Macsen didn't come on this adventure though. Dad said it has something to do with Macsen not being able to support his own head yet? I think he would do fine but nobody listens to me anyway.

Carbon Footprint

In honor of Live Earth Macsen and I are contributing as much carbon and other gases to the atmosphere as possible. I have never seen a baby that can go 'No. 2' like Macsen. The ozone layer must be depleted over Wisconsin.

Last night dad and I were burning sparklers, smoke bombs, and tanks. Here's what we have to say to those Live Earth hypocrites...