Cruz's Hair Cut

Cruz's hair was starting to look a bit wild and crazy so Roger and I decided to give him a bit more of a big boy 'do.... he is almost 9 months, after all. :)

before...

after... its pretty subtle but shorter on the top, sides and back! :)

Last Day of 2010

Rowan and Cruz are enjoying the last day of 2010 in some really cute matching outfits!

Thankful Thursday x2

We're finally back and I'm finally feeling a little bit caught up. Here are the last two weeks of Thankful Thursday. We had so much fun in Illinois visiting friends and family. Thank you so much to all of you who spoiled us and the boys. We are so blessed. :)

*Thanks to Aunty JIll for the adorable picture of Summer & Cruz on Day 102. :)

Good-Bye Warm Weather!

We're heading for the land of snow, cold and family! We are bringing so much stuff, seriously.  We're checking 3 suitcases and carrying on one. We have a double stroller and a car seat, two backpacks, one duffel bag and two children. We're hoping to get everything/everyone there in one piece. Don't worry, family, you're all worth the stress and trouble. :)

"Christmas" Morning

We had a fun Christmas morning at our house! The boys loved the basketball hoop! There was even a cute ornament wrapped under the tree for Roger and me that Rowan made at pre-school! Roger and the boys played with some of the new toys while I made our traditional cinnamon roll breakfast. Here are just a few of the photos:

Finally ready to open presents after about 20 minutes of basketball playing.

Cruz wasn't so sure about this whole present thing. Luckily, Rowan showed him pretty quickly. This is the first time that Rowan has opened all of his gifts by himself.

A lot of the things the boys got in their stockings were necessities (toothbrush, sippy cup, etc.). I think Rowan's favorite stocking gift was a wooden car that you can color on with markers. Its pretty cute. I was excited to find it in the $1 spot at Target.

Rowan was pretty excited about the new train and matchbox car he added to his collection.

I found this for Cruz.... He's already trying to walk with it!!!

Rowan loved the cinnamon rolls this year! We enjoyed them on Happy Birthday Jesus plates left over from Rowan's pre-school party.

It was such a fun and blessed morning together as a family! It wasn't all fun, however. Rowan needed a pretty heavy reminder about sharing and that even though he is a baby, some things do indeed belong to Cruz. :)

Sneak a Peek..

at what Rowan and Cruz are going to see tomorrow morning, Christmas morning at our house!

a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/53585585@N03/5273318772/" title="ChristmasEve#2 by BaumBlog, on Flickr">

Rowan is going to flip when he sees their joint gift, the basketball hoop. I can't wait!!!

Christmas Program

I know I've said it a million times but I am so incredibly thankful that Rowan goes to a Christian school. It was so beautiful to see all these kids singing, praising and ringing bells (hehe) for Jesus. Rowan was the best little bell ringer there. He did such a good job! I am also thankful for our baby-sitter, Jessica. She is fabulous... the boys love her and I was able to fully enjoy Rowan knowing that baby Cruz was in good hands. :) 

Can you find Rowan? All of the 2 year olds are sitting on the floor in the front.

The boy 4th from the left in the white sweater and dark hair is one of Rowan's best friends. His other best friend is Brayden who is 3rd from the right.
The little girl with the dark hair and red dress two kids to Rowan's right is his little girlfriend. They are so cute together. :)

Rowan was put front and center because he's the cutest one in the class... :)

Rowan and Brayden

Rowan with two of his teachers

The video is not the best quality but you get the gist of it. :)

Thankful Thursday...

will have to be Thankful Friday. I have been so swamped getting Rowan's class Christmas party together that I haven't had time to put my images together for the week. Sorry. :)

Here it is!!

Some Christmas Cheer...

Just a Rowan

This little boy went Christmas shopping at pre-school today and picked out gifts for Mommy, Daddy & Cruzy. He is also gearing up for his first big on stage appearance: his pre-school Christmas program on Thursday night. The 2 year olds only appear in one song but I am confident that it will be beyond cute!

Christmas Cookies!

Just so he doesn't feel left out, here's Cruz standing and holding on to Rowan's dump truck. Luckily Rowan was at DQ with Daddy because I'm pretty sure this wouldn't be "big brother approved."

Our Christmas Tree

 I am always amazed at how unique everyone's Christmas trees are.  I've seen some gorgeous Christmas trees this season with beautiful coordinated colors, ribbon and lots of style! I absolutely love those trees, I think they look amazing. Our tree does not look like that but I love it even more. Our tree may not belong on HGTV but it is so incredibly meaningful to us. Roger and I both came into our marriage with our own collection of ornaments from our childhoods. Every ornament on our tree has a story or a special reason for being there. 

This ornament commemorates Roger's very first Christmas twenty seven years ago.

This one symbolizes my first Christmas the year after Roger's.

Here is Rowan Christian's first Christmas ornament. Roger and I also look at this ornament and remember the fun of celebrating our first Christmas as parents.

Here's Cruz's very first ornament and the newest one on our tree. We are so looking forward to celebrating his first Christmas with him.

This Santa ornament might just be my favorite ornament on the tree.

Roger grew up as a big Bull's fan. This ornament is from their glory years!

These ornaments hang on the bottom of our tree to remind us of our babies already with Jesus.

For quite a few years my grandparents would get us an ornament at Christmastime. They were always so colorful and brighten up our tree.

We got this one last year when baby Cruz was on the way!

Roger and I got this ornament the Christmas after we got engaged.

9 year old Roger was a big fan of baseball.

Rowan picked out his own ornament this year. Big surprise, he chose a train. :)

Rowan got a special treat today. A LARGE orange drink which he called his diet coke. As we were out in the backyard Rowan said, "I better share my diet coke with Cruzy. That's kind." He walked over to Cruz and put the cup down. Cruz looked pretty excited to be included in this.

But just as his baby brother was reaching for the cup, Rowan looks at me and says, I don't think he wants any, Mommy.

Haha, Rowan, I think the pictures tell the real story. :-)

Happy Friday

The boys' accomplishments of the week!

Thankful Thursday

Here is Thankful Thursday about an hour and a half early. I usually write this post Wednesday night and set it to auto publish on Thursday... I accidentally just hit publish and I'm too tired to worry about it anymore. Enjoy.

*A quick note about Day 80: A lot of couples compliment each other with opposite personalities but not Roger and I. We are both strong, stubborn and very meticulous in our own ways. It makes for quite a bit of fun around the Baum house as you can imagine. Anyway, I am thankful that Roger is a bit crazy too because we balance each other out. I can over look his obsessive need to twisty tie extension cords, if he can over look my obsessive need to have everything in the house picked up at night before I can sit down to relax in the evening. We make quite a pair. :)

Sweet Boy

Poor Cruz has a bad cold and is super stuffed up. Its breaking my heart but he's still so sweet and smiley. Just wanted to share one quick picture.

A Daily Dose of Rowan

Rowan loves playing with our Nativity set but he's generally not allowed to touch it. The one exception to the rule is when I'm making dinner. Then he's allowed to play with the "big" set. He has his own Little People Nativity to play with whenever. Anyway, I found a few things that made me laugh when I was dusting the table today. I had to take photos and record Rowan's responses.

Me: Rowan, Sweetie, how did one of the sheep from the Nativity get into our lamp?

R: I put him there with my own fingers, Mama.

Me: Rowan, did you do this too? (I pointed at the camel with baby Jesus on top).

R: Yep, the baby Jesus wanted to ride that big cow.

8 Months! :)

Playing "Pretend"

Rowan's way of playing has changed lately. He loves organized games, big floor puzzles, hide and seek and pretend and he always wants someone to play these with him. The other day he said, "here Mommy," and handed me nothing. I asked him what it was and he said, "that's your chocolate ice cream." His favorite thing to do, though, is to turn our bed into a car. Rowan drives us all around town. We go to the car wash, gas station, McDonalds, Roger's office and anywhere else Rowan wants. Of course, before we drive off we all have to say "click, click" as we buckle up. This always makes me smile because while Rog and I mimic putting on seat belts, Rowan mimics putting on the 5pt harness in his car seat. :)