WooooHooo for 2!!!!!

Reese turned 2 on Friday. If you want to get techical we celebrated at a gas station and dined on Arbys. We were on our way back from Disneyland that day:) We celeberated a little early with a dinner with the princesses. Keegan HATED every moment of the characters being that close (some great pics to follow soon!!!!) but Reese really enjoyed the entire experience. She even went to bed that night pretending to talk to Snow White and Ariel and sang "Happy Birthday" to herself for about and hour.

Tonight we celebrated with cupcakes at home and our new family tradition of everyone wearing a silly hat (we have a large dress up closet due to my obsessive costume shopping after Halloween last year!!!!)

Here are a few pics from tonight...and once I am fully recovered from the Disney magic I will post LOTS of other photos!!!

The family in their "party hats"!!!!

I think I look rather good in the sombrero:) Do you like Keegan's pimp hat???

Reese in her hat...ready for any danger that may arise from that candle!!!!

Mmmmmmm...cupcakes!!! Keegan wanted to make cupcakes for Reese...how sweet is that!!!

Reese with her 2 favorite gifts...her Minnie Mouse with a wardrobe and her cool new shades:)

and now for the sentimental part of the bday post....

I know every mom says she cant beleive how big her kids are getting, how fast the time flies by, and to enjoy every moment. I always felt like those were just cheesy lines that unorginal moms came up with to describe their parental journey. So, here I sit, truly feeling all those sentiments...and there is really no better way to describe the experience of watching your children grow. I would like to think of myself as an extremely honest person, and I am comfortable admiting that being a parent is the most difficult thing I have ever done and that most of my days are far from the image of picnics in the park and baking cookies that I had imagined. Yet, here I am thinking about my baby girl turning 2 and it is hard to complain. It really is all worth it. I have a beautiful, healthy, feisty and funny little girl...and I really have no idea where the last two years went. I remember the overwhelming feeling of having the responibility of an infant when Keegan was born. Then Reese was born and it seemed like 10 times the work rather than the double work load I was expecting. I kept setting little goals like getting through the first month, then the first 3 months, then getting her sleeping through the night, then the first year. At the time I felt like I couldnt get through some days and now I have a two year old who is very independent and sweet with a little dash of rotten and myschevious!!!!

So...as I sit here I cant help but be very proud of Kurt and I for getting through the last few years with lots of smiles, laughs, and amazing memories to make the sleep deprivation and temper tantrums seem trivial. We really are blessed to have each other and to get to be in the front row to witness two little people experience all that life has to offer.

So...take a little stroll down memory lane with me. Here are some pics from Reese Elizabeth's first 2 years on this earth:) We love you Reesie Cup!!!!!

Reese's 1st smile:)

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We just cant get enough...

You would think a pilot and his wife would get bored with airplanes...but its just doenst happen!!!! We were fortunate enough for our honorary squadron commander to open his home and his hangar to us this weekend,,,and we even got some rides in some really cool airplanes. What an amazing day...and to make it even better Kurts parents and sis are here so we didnt have to take the kids!!!!

We have decided that when we retire we are going to live on an airpark...although we havent quite figured out how we will afford the airplane yet:) Good thing we have some time to figure these thinsg out!!!!

Kurt flew in a WWII T-6 and I got to fly in a Stearman bi-plane...and even got to go fly with my good friend Jasmine (who will from this point forward be refered to as my wingwoman and we will only use call signs!!!!)

Oh...and the first pic is of Kurt and baby Jude...the latest addition to the Hoolie clan!!! I had to include it b.c he is just so cute!!!!

Enjoy the pics!!!!

There is no place like home...

The kids, Nonnie and Joe-Pa, and I (yes, mismatched grandparents...but the other ones were working) spent the afternoon at Jeffery Mansion. This was one of my favorite places when I was little...and to this day I just dont think a trip back to OH is complete without a visit. This is one of those times that I am reminded of exactly how long Kurt and I have known each other. When you used to hang out at the same park you know you go WAY BACK!!!! Kurts mom even pointed out to the kids that Kurt and his sister planted the tulips out front when they were little.

Kurt and I used to go there all the time when we were in highschool. It was our little romantic spot. I even have pictures of us in highschool hanging out there. Of course I didnt take a walk down by the water since Reese is a crazy woman and I envisioned some sort of rescue diver needed at the end of the day. Life sure has changed!!!! Kurt and I are so blessed to have most of our family in one place...and to pretty much have the same memories to look back on. I hope one day our kids appreciate this...and maybe even live somewhere long enough to establish their own little military kiddo version of home sweet home!!!

world of bouce...

Aunt Lisa set up this cool evening for us. Two rooms filled with everything inflatable...can you imagine how much fun the kids had...and how worn out they were too!!!! For my bday Kurt got me te greatest little camcorder to feed my blogging addiction...I have some funny video that I will post once I get all of that downloaded (video includes Kurt and Lisas boyfriend enjoying the boucy castles too!!!!) If you are in columbus and have kiddos you should try this out...they have family night every Thursday and you can get 3 hours of boucing, pizza and drinks but you have to make reservations.

Reese is just getting so big...she pretty much did everything on her own!!!

Can you tell how fast Reese is going??? This is the HUGE slide. Kurt was supposed to go down with her but she went before he even sat down. This child is FEARLESS!!!!

Lisa, Chis and Lanie...thanks for the fun playdate:)

Guess who is one???

Our Goddaughter Annie just turned one...what a sweetie she is. We were lucky enough to see her while we were home in Ohio.

Love you Annie (and big sis Emma too!!!!) We hope you had a wonderful 1st day. As you can see in the pics she loves cake:) Your gift will be on its way soon:)

Eggcellent

We colored easter eggs with the Rahe fam...
The kids had sooooo much fun. Keegan was so deliberate and gentle...Reese wanted to see if they would bounce:)
This was just the start of a wonderful Easter...we missed Daddy alot but had a great time with the family during our second week in OH.

I didnt take any pics of the kids on Easter all dressed up...they were a little moody and by the time things settled down we had changed into comfy clothes. I will have to get them all dressed up again so everyone can see Reeses cute dress and Keegans cute pink polo shirt (Thanks Talon!!!!)

Lots more pics to follow...probably not in order, but we will see what happens. Check back often over the next few days for updates from our Ohio visit. Next trip...Disney land in 3 weeks!!!!!

The finished product

Keegan left this yellow egg in the dye forever...patiently stirring it and watching it get brighter and brighter...typical Keegan

The process...everyone had so much fun and we didnt even make that big of a mess:)

Keegan and Logan...2 peas in a pod!!!!

Libby and her boyfriend Mike...oh to be a teenager in love:)

Reese is such a ham!!!!

For those of you who dont know my sis...here is Melissa...she is the one that I swear Reese looks just like...they have the same smile, expressions, attitde etc:)

Keegan working on his first egg

The group...I think Reese peeking around the corner is soooo funny!!!!

Reese didnt hug Libby until the last day we were in OH...Libby was heartbroken and thought Reese didnt like her. She was just playing hard to get...as you can tell in this pic she loves Libby Lou!!!!

Can you see the crack in Reeses egg??? The second we handed it to her she checked to see if it bounced. So different from her bro!!!

Keegan stole the show...

http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2009/04/04/NEW_CHIEF.ART_ART_04-04-09_B4_I3DF25A.html?sid=101

We are in OH and the main reason for this visit was to see Kurts dad sworn in as the Chief of Police and do a little celebrating with the family...

Yesterday we got all dressed up and headed to the police academy. You can imagine my stress level when taking 2 toddlers to a formal event...especially when Keegan didnt got to bed until after midnight. They were actually very well behaved, and actually drew a few laughs. As the Safety Director was speaking Keegan took a nice quiet moment to loudly announce that he needed to go to the bathroom. So, off we went. A family friend came into the bathroom to let us know that we were needed on stage for the official swearing in. Keegan pants are around his ankles and I had to just say we would be there when he was done.

We ran back to the auditorium (for those of you who know me,,,picture me running in heels!!!) and were greeted with a round of applause. Everyone had waited for our return:) So...as always, the kids stole the show...and it even made the newspaper this morning...

CONGRATULATIONS DAD!!!! We are so very proud of you and know you will accomplish great things. Thank you for waiting for us to get back to OH to do all of the celebrating...and thank you for being such a great grandpa!!!!