Happy Father's Day, Phil!

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Hero Dad


You are my hero, Dad
You're my secure foundation.
When I think of you, I'm filled with love
And fond appreciation.


You make me feel protected;
I'm sheltered by your care.
You're always my true friend;
When I need you, you're always there.


You have a place of honor
Deep within my heart.
You've been my superhero, Dad,
Right from the very start.


By Joanna Fuchs

Firsts and Lasts

I would like to apologize in advance for the lengthiness of this post, as it has been over a month since I last blogged. I dubbed the name of this post, "Firsts and Lasts." May was truly a month full of unforgettable firsts and lasts.


On May 24th, Aiden and Blake turned one year. I cannot believe that it has been a year since those bundles of joy came into this world! Jason and Hillary threw a wonderful birthday party and we are so thankful that we were fortunate enough to celebrate such an amazing "FIRST!"

Chase and Aiden posing for the camera.

Mommy and Daddy helping to open gifts.

Snapshots of the boys having a taste of their "first" cake!

This month also marked the end of an era for our niece Madison. She spent her "last" day as a Wohlwend Wildcat and is now an Oakville Middle School Spartan. It is crazy to think that she is heading to middle school. I can still remember holding her in the hospital and thinking about how tiny she was. Now, she is an accomplished young girl and we are so proud of her!

Chase and Maddie

Madison and her principal. She received so many awards! Way to go, Maddie! :)

This was the "first" year that Chase was able to take independent swim lessons without Mom or Dad. "Aunt" Jeni teaches swim lessons at the YMCA and offered to do private lessons with Chase and three other kiddos. Since Chase loves the water and "Aunt" Jeni was teaching, Phil and I thought it was the perfect opportunity. He did a fantastic job and has grown so much since the Mommy and Me classes.

Chase using his "scoops!"

Sporting the goggles!

Conversing with "Aunt" Jeni.

May also marked our "first" trip to the Children's Garden at the Botanical Gardens. What an amazing place! The garden is perfect for kiddos that are Chase's age and he had an amazing time!

Spelunking in the cave!

Chase is loving the rope swing.

It is so hard to believe that Chase has already completed his "first" year of preschool. He really loves school and is so eager to learn. He enjoyed every minute of every day and told me on several occasions that he wished he could stay longer. Mrs. Koenig was fabulous to Chase! She enjoyed his enthusiasm and taught him so much. Needless to say, September cannot come fast enough for Chase. He has only been off for less than a week and keeps asking when he gets to go back!

Chase and his teacher Mrs. Koenig

Mommy, Daddy and Chase at his Spring performance.

Zany at the Zoo!

Today Chase and I had a fun-filled day at the Zoo with his preschool class. He and I arrived and headed straight for the Children's Zoo since his class was not meeting until later in the morning. After brushing the goats, we headed to see the meerkats, fish, tree frogs, guinea pigs and much more in the indoor portion of the Children's Zoo. He absolutely loved the veterinary office that was set up and told me once again about his plans to become a veteranarian. Although it was difficult to pull him away from this section, we managed to make it to the gigantic spider web, slides and climbable (is that even a word?) hippo.

Unfortunately, we could not visit all the sections of the Children's Zoo as it was time to head to class. The class that the Zoo offered was amazing! The docents discussed the different coverings that animals have to protect them. Of course, Chase was raising his hand to answer every single question (whether he knew the answer or not)! The most humorous part of the class is when the docent asked, "What type of animal is a lizard?" and Chase replied, "A reptile!" Seriously, how does this boy know this stuff?!?

Needless to say, we had a fantastic day and were able to ride the carousel and visit the penguins too! I hope that you were able to get outside and enjoy the weather as well!

I will leave you with some pictures of my boy and some funny happenings from the last few days!

Story #1: Chase and I were looking at a Toys R Us advertisement and it showed a croquet set. Of course Chase felt that he needed it, so I asked (knowing full well that he didn't know what it was) "Do you know what that is?" Thinking that he may call it a golf set, I prepared myself for explanations about the clubs and why it is played with a larger ball. Suddenlty, Chase replies "It's called croquet, Mom!" WHAT?!? How in the world did he know that? I asked, "How did you know that?" and he said, "I saw it on Maggie and the Ferocious Beast." Wow, I didn't know cartoons discussed these things!

Story #2: Chase, Phil and I were having a discussion about plans for the day and Chase says, "Speaking of which...let's just go!" Honestly, where does he come up with this stuff?

Riding the caterpillar. He must have mentioned about fifty times that they have caterpillars that will turn into butterflies at his preschool! Can we say a little excited?

Petting a beautiful dove. I guess I should mention that we (yes, Chase and I) also pet a lizard, Madagascan Hissing Cockroach, and a hedgehog.

Chase and his friend Justine.

Okay, I fully admit that I made him try this get-up on! It even made elephant sounds! Am I am bad Mom?!?

Chase just had to try on this snake for size! I do believe that it is as big as him!

Spidey and his web!

Chase absolutely loves hippos, so this was a perfect photo op!

My little river otter!

Ridin' on the poisonous blue dart frog!

He always tells me he wants to be a veteranarian. He loved nursing the giraffe, dog and cat back to health. He also enjoyed checking out the x-rays under the light.

Exact words: "Argh, maties!"

Trying not to be cheesy!

Spring Break 2009 Highlights!

When I mention the words "Spring Break," you may have conjured up the idea of sandy white beaches, the ocean, or somewhere tropical. While those things certainly would have been appreciated, Chase and I were lucky enough to get to spend our Spring Break together. Instead of warm and tropical our Spring Break has consisted of visits to a farm, playground, airport and Zoo.

The week began with a memorial service for Phil's uncle and lunch at First Watch with MaMa and Daddy. After such a sad day on Monday, Chase and I were headed to the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Dogtown on Tuesday when I recieved a call from Phil telling me he was heading to Urgent Care with unbearable pains in his back near his kidneys. Long story short, he had a kidney stone and we were unable to attend the parade. Instead, we opted for a wonderful picnic lunch (well...McDonalds) and a trip to the playground and farm.

The highlights of Wednesday including picking up "Aunt" Jeni from the airport (Chase was sleeping and missed the whole event) and you guessed it, another trip to Suson Park. Thursday provided more wonderful sunshine and a visit with MaMa, PaPa and Great Grandma. Today, my Mom, Dad, Chase and I went to the Zoo! It was the perfect ending to a perfect week and while tropical would have been nice, I certainly wouldn't have traded the time with my amazing little boy!

That's How He Rolls!

Last Sunday, Chase and I had the opportunity to go to Isabelle's Fourth Birthday Party. She had the party at St. Clair Lanes in Illinois. On our trip over the bridge, Chase and I had some time to discuss what to expect from the bowling alley (no, we did not discuss the clientele). I told him that he would be expected to roll the ball down the lane to hit the pins. Needless to say, the questions followed; "What's a lane?" "What are pins?" I told him to just wait until we arrived and that I would explain all of the details. "What are details?", Chase says!

Upon our arrival, Chase was excited to see his friends (Isabelle, TJ and Yuri), but more excited to find the perfect ball! He settled for a pink one (yes, he is in touch with his femanine side) and it was on! I was really excited to see that they had a ramp for the kids to use. It certainly made things a lot easier (despite our ball getting stuck a few times). Chase scored a 65! Not bad for the first time out! The picture above depicts Chase in the zone, backwards cap and all!

So close, yet so far away!

Look at the precision!

My little cheeseball with his Hello Kitty party hat and all!

Are You Ready for Some Baseball???

Well, I don't know about anyone else, but I am certainly ready for some warmer weather and baseball season! Spring Training tickets are on sale now and I cannot wait until the Home Opener on April 6th! Since it has been so cold lately, I thought I would blog about warmer spring weather and share some of our fun times at Busch Stadium from last year!

A Year in Review!

I have taken this idea from my fellow bloggers. This is a review of 2008 through pictures. I hope you enjoy!

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December