'Tis the season!

Well I have been very delinquent in my blogging lately. I blame the busy holiday season that snuck up on me this year! Regardless, it is going to be a very Merry Christmas in our house. We got an early start when Will visited Santa and went to the squadron Christmas party last weekend. At the party he made some crafts and had lots of snacks. We waited and waited to see Santa but there must have been a hold-up; he was so late that we finally found another Santa to visit at the NEX mall. He did just fine...and there was no line! Will was excited to see Santa but he got really excited when Santa offered him some candy canes. That was the ticket! He sat on Santa's lap for a picture but wasn't very smiley at that point. He just wanted to open his candy canes. But now we have proof that he saw Santa...and he must have been fairly good since he got candy and not a lump of coal.
We are headed to the Massanutten Resort in the Shenandoah Valley for Christmas this year. We decided to take a family vacation, our first in a very long time. They have snow sports, arts and crafts, and a huge indoor water park that I'm sure Will is going to love! It should be fun. Check back after Christmas for those pictures! Merry Christmas!

A case of the yuckies!

We're having a major case of the yuckies around here. No one's sick right now (knock on wood!) but someone keeps identifying everything as yucky. One major source of the yuckies comes from inside Will's nose. He's taken to picking and "no fingers in your nose" has suddenly become my most popular phrase (thanks preschool!). He tells me that he needs to pick the yuckies out. Gross. He also freaks out if his hands are sticky and tells me to wash the yuckies off! A few nights ago during bath, there were little bits of soap or general bathtub gunk (I don't even want to know) floating in the water. He kept saying "there's yuckies in here, mommy" but I wasn't sure what he was talking about. Assuming the infamous nose yuckies again, I asked if he needed to blow his nose. He looked at me with this annoyed expression on his face and said "no, mommy, there's yuckies in the bathtub!" as if that was the most logical explanation ever. Oh Will! I am sure the yuckies will not end anytime soon. That is, unless I up my housecleaning abilities and that's not going to happen! Let the yuckies prevail.

Red Red Everywhere!

Will is in an interesting phase right now, one that involves a fascination of and demand for everything red. Normal? I'm not sure. We went through an orange phase a few months back; we had to have orange popsicles, orange playdoh and even orange juice. Now we've switched to red. Oddly enough, these colors don't correlate with his school's color of the month at all. If that was the case, we'd be enjoying everything brown this month!

Luckily red fit in well with our Halloween theme this year. Will was a very dashing firefighter. It was great! He carried his Darth Vader candy pail (not a typical fireman's candy pail) around the neighborhood collecting his goodies. He didn't want to say "trick or treat" at first but by the end of the night, he had uttered a few. He did manage to say "thank you" though. And luckily for Will, Mom and Dad managed to not eat all of his candy. I think there's a package of Mike & Ike's left in there somewhere.
Everything else continues to go well for Will. He seems to really enjoy school and talks about his teachers "Miss Faif" (Faith) and Miss CJ. He routinely names his classmates as well and has pretend play with them at home. I'm glad he's adjusted well and enjoys his time there. Sometimes I have to tell him that it is NOT a school day...that doesn't always go over so well!

William the Explorer?

Will has become increasingly more entertaining this past year. He has quite the personality and amuses me on a daily basis (without even knowing it!) Today after we dropped Keith at the airport, we were driving to his doctor's appointment. I was listening to the radio and from the backseat comes practically an entire Dora the Explorer episode. But he wasn't reciting an episode that he'd seen on TV (or it didn't seem that way); he was making up a Dora episode based on what was happening to us. As we went through the downtown tunnel, he recited "now we go through the tunnel. What comes next? The bridge!" I was pretty surprised that he was that creative. It didn't stop there...we went "over the bridge" and "past the trees" and we even saw Swiper (the villianous fox on the show). Finally, after we'd completed our trip, "We did it! We did it! We did it! Yeah!" What a little character. But maybe this is just a sign that he's getting too familiar with TV. :)

Pickin' time

Well it is finally my favorite time of the year...fall! And with that comes big mugs of hot apple cider, beautiful foliage, and numerous trips to the pumpkin patch. Luckily for me, Keith and Will are willing to go along with my fall-induced craziness! We have already made two trips to Hunt Club Farms in Virginia Beach with our two playgroups. I love it there! They have pony rides, a petting zoo, hayrack rides, and of course pumpkins! Will was overjoyed that the hayrack ride was pulled by a big tractor, as it feeds into his current fascination (bordering on obsession) with all things transportation. Will got to feed and pet the goats, puppies, and lambs. He tried in vain to pet the chickens and bunnies that run loose around the farm but they proved too skittish for him, which is probably good for the animals! Above we are ready for our first hayrack ride of the season! We enjoyed seeing all the animals on the farm, which even included some llamas and camels. Not your usual farm life.



Here Will enjoys his pony ride. We actually tried to get him on the pony several times but he was too scared. So we played in the pumpkin area for a while and decided to give it one last try. Success! He was definitely freaked out at first but quickly adapted and ended up enjoying himself.








Will also loved picking out his own pumpkin. There were plenty of big pumpkins but the kids got to go to a special area full of mini pumpkins, kind of Will-sized pumpkins! He roamed around looking for just the right one. He finally found it...along with an ear of Indian corn that he tried to eat! That couldn't have tasted very good. Luckily we left with all teeth intact.





Our second trip to Hunt Club Farms was with our Beautiful Babes playgroup. The moms took the kids for a morning outing in place of our usual playdate. It was great. Here will sits with his buddies, from left: Henry, Aria, Katie, Will and Devon. The kids are all around 2 and play really well together. We're lucky to be part of such a fun, supportive group.



Will's favorite part of Hunt Club was playing in the giant mountain of straw! It is great; the kids can climb, jump, roll, and throw straw in the air so that is rains down on everyone nearby. Definitely a good way to guarantee a long, peaceful nap. We already made one jack o' lantern but it didn't last in the strange hot/cold/rainy/dry weather we've been having. So we'll make more! I hope to visit another pumpkin patch this weekend so we can load up. Check back for pictures of Will in his firefighter costume for Halloween. He will be able to ride the motorized firetruck that Aunt Jill gave him. Hilarious!

Big boy bed and the ball

Well the day has come, much to my dismay. Will finally learned (or maybe we finally caught on) that he could climb out of his crib and experience freedom in his room. Sigh. I was dreading this day, not because I don't want him to explore his room but I prefer that he explore during daylight hours (excluding naptime, of course!) So we took everything remotely hazardous out of his room and converted his crib into a toddler bed. As you can see, he was VERY excited! As soon as he saw Keith take down the side rail and put up the little one, he climbed right in to check it out. Then he proceeded to circle his room, collecting toys to join him in his new bed. We were relieved that he was so excited; however, the excitement quickly faded when it was actually time to go to sleep. And naptime sleep is eluding us so far, although Keith did find him lying on the floor today. Why not the bed? Who knows! But we're getting there. He is such a big boy.

Besides the recent changes, Will's been doing very well. He seems to really enjoy school. When I pick him up he gives me the rundown of the day's activities, which usually include "eat lunch" and "color." Sometimes I get the extended version that includes "music class" and "Computer Joe" who is the guy who teaches 2 year olds how to use the computer (I can only imagine!) Luckily he seems to enjoy it and looks forward to going. We heard through the grape vine (another 2 year old classmate) that Will "hit a boy and the boy cried" and that "Will had to go to timeout." I didn't verify that with his teacher but I have a feeling it might be true! Oh, 2 year olds!

We had a big weekend as well! Last night we went to the 2009 Hawkeye-Greyhound Ball. It was a blast, as usual. The food was better than last year (yay), as was the wine (double yay!) We got to see many out of town friends and spend time with our friends here who will soon be moving. (Boo, hiss!) And the 80s cover band was fabulous! The dance floor was packed with semi-lucid Navy pilots singing at the top of their lungs to Journey. That is a recipe for a major party! Thanks to Aunt Jill for taking care of Will while we partied it up. I'm already looking forward to next year's ball!

Quality time

We were lucky enough to have Grandma Gigi come visit this month; what a treat! We always enjoy her visits but this one was especially great because Will and Grandma got to spend lots of one-on-one time together. Keith and I headed to San Antonio for the wedding of his friend/college roommate Casey to his beautiful bride Kristina. Grandma Gigi to the rescue! She offered to stay with Will over the weekend so we could have a little getaway and spend some quality time together as well. Will and Grandma Gigi had a great time; they played outside, fed the ducks at the pond, baked chocolate chip cookies (Will helped...I can only imagine the mess!), and laughed a lot. Will did suffer a little separation anxiety from Mom but overall he did fine. Grandma is a pro and she definitely knows how to distract and redirect. Grandma Gigi left while Will was still asleep and when he got up that morning, he was asking for her and looking in the guest room to see where she was. And I heard that Grandma scored a free airfare voucher on the way home; this makes us very happy! :) Above is a picture of Will and Grandma Gigi at the Virginia Zoo in Norfolk.

Keith and I enjoyed our trip to San Antonio. We stayed at a beautiful hotel right on the Riverwalk and got a great rate thanks to Aunt Frannie (she rocks!) We got to catch up with some of Keith's college friends and see a few sights in downtown SA. Most of all, I think we enjoyed sleeping in above all else. It is the little things! Thanks again, Gigi, for letting us get rested after our long nights out with friends. To the left, we pose at the wedding reception. Below is a picture of the Tulane alum table (with spouses, of course!) They put us in the corner, which was probably a good choice. All we want to know is...when is the next wedding?

School Days

So Will officially started school last week. His first day of preschool for two year olds was Thursday, September 10th. He didn't say much but as far as I can tell, all went well. At least he returned today without any argument or hissy fits so that's a good sign. From now until June, he'll be attending Great Bridge Preschool two mornings a week. That gives me a little time to myself and to possibly get a part time job or volunteer gig. But right now I'm just enjoying my 7 hours of freedom per week (who's counting???)

We got a new backpack (or packback according to Will) with Thomas the Train on it and also a new firetruck lunchbox. He has to walk into the classroom with his "packback" on his back and carrying his lunchbox. It is so funny to see this line of two year olds parading down the hallway with a bag as large as them and a lunchbox that's weighted down by food. If nothing else he'll work on his back and arm muscles. Here he is putting on his new nametag before heading in to class.

Will's teachers both seem very sweet. I can only imagine running a classroom of 15 or so two year olds. Yikes. They obviously have been blessed with an abundance of patience. The class will learn their ABCs, colors, shapes, and many many songs. It will be a fun year for him.

I had grand images of the perfect "first day of school" pictures but instead on that morning, Will was fussy and throwing fits. So I managed to snap only a few (mostly bad) pictures before dropping him off at school. He was a little more agreeable in the afternoon and I also managed to get a few shots on our front steps this morning (second day of school!) I hope to get more as the year goes on.

Bye Bye, Buns!

Oh Will. Some days that is all I can say as I'm laughing at the little things that come out of his mouth. In the past months, as he's become even more verbal and started creating longer sentences, he's really come up with some doozies! While getting ready for bed one night, I must have referred to Will's bottom as his buns. Well something stuck and from then on he's been pointing out his buns. While sitting on the couch, during diaper changes, in the bath. Keith was putting a clean diaper on and when he was all done, Will yells "bye, bye buns!" That's funny. On another day we put him in this car seat and the strap was hurting his neck. Keith fixed it and Will says "all done, hurt the neck!" Ha! Everything is "the"...the neck, the milk. I guess he's learning. One of my other favorites is his use of "alright." He saw our neighbor outside and the neighbor said he had to go and Will goes "Alright then, bye bye." :)


Our good friends Kristin and Brian Manning came to visit and Will took to Brian instantly. As soon as Brian got up on Saturday, Will took him by the hand and showed him all of his toys and didn't stop "entertaining" Brian until they left. It was so cute. Luckily Brian was a very good sport; they did some male bonding over the weekend. We went to the beach and Will never tired of playing in the surf, building sand castles, and flying his new kite. He was sad when we had to leave. Our weather turned more fall like this past week so I guess our beach time is done for a while. I can only imagine how much Will will enjoy the beach next summer. We did sneak out for a little dinner and live music on the Oceanfront while the Mannings were here. It was a blast.

Flying High

Wow! Someone is excited about his birthday gift. Aunt Frannie sent Will his very own flight jacket and airplane and they are a big hit. We opened the box on Saturday morning and Will immediately wanted to put on his flight jacket. No surprise there. But...he wouldn't take it off. Hours later, after breakfast, Dora, lots of play time, the jacket remained. Poor kid was really hot but I guess it was worth the sacrifice to be a cool pilot. There were a lot of airplane noises and swooping hand gestures as his small plane soared through the air. Will thought it was pretty neat that he looked like his dad, although I think Keith was more excited about it. Thanks, Great Aunt Frannie, for the awesome gift! Now Will just has to decide if he wants to be a pilot or a firefighter for Halloween.

Will has been even more vocal lately and his sassy side is starting to show. He wants to do everything himself and is offended if I offer to help. He was struggling to hold his sippy cup while we were walking tonight so I asked if I could hold it for him. "No, Mommy, my hold! My hold!" Okay, got it. You hold. :) He is trying to be pretty demanding, telling me to get him some apple juice and forgetting to say please. But we're working on it. I'm hoping preschool will help with that too!

Besides all the recent flight time, we've just been winding down our summer and preparing (mentally that is) for Will to start his 2 morning-a-week preschool. I'm looking forward to having a few hours a week to myself, keeping my eyes open for a good part time job or volunteer experience. Or maybe I'll be a lady who lunches. Okay, probably not. But one can dream! We have friends (Kristin and Brian!) coming to town this weekend and we hope to hit the beach if Tropical Storm Danny allows. Check back for fun beach pictures!

Nebraska Finale and Weight Check

Good news on the Heyen front today. I took Will in for his 24 month well baby check and for the first time since he was 2 months old, we is actually on the growth chart! Amazing! He weighs 22.2 pounds and is 2 feet, 9 inches tall, which puts him around the 10th percentile for both. This doesn't seem exciting to most parents but since he is usually drastically below the "normal" height/weight for kids his age, it is a big accomplishment in our house. It has been a long 2 years as far as weight/growth struggles but hopefully we're putting those behind us and William will continue to grow on the right path. Perhaps 2 ice cream cones for a snack is paying off in the long run. Soon he'll be asking if his diaper makes his butt look fat. :)


This is also the third and final installment of pictures from our trip to Nebraska. It has taken me a while to get it all organized but I've had a lot of fun looking back at the pictures. Will was lucky enough to have two early birthday parties while he was in Nebraska (spoiled! spoiled!) Great Grandma Vivian and Great Aunt Jody threw the first in Fremont. Will opened his gifts and then ran outside to play with his new bubbles. I love how a simple gift like bubbles makes a world of difference to a child. Great Aunt Jody was more than willing to dive in and help Will blow bubbles in the driveway. My grandma Vivian was even able to come outside for a while so she could participate in the fun. It was a great way to spend a day. Below Will is doling out kisses to Great Grandma Vivian. She ate it up!



Will also got to spend a lot of time at Grandma Charma's house. Not only did Grandma get Will a huge birthday cake with his favorite truck on it (firetruck, of course!) but she invited Aunt Rachel, Uncle Kelly, Uncle Chad, and Nikki to spend the day with us. Will couldn't get enough of Uncle Chad, which is funny because Will was afraid of Uncle Chad when he was little! Times change. Will wanted to be wherever Chad was and do whatever Chad did. Very cute. Of course he soaked in all of Aunt Rachel's love as well. They shared many laughs and hugs. I enjoy seeing Will bonding with our family now that he's a little older. I'm never sure if he'll remember everyone since our trips are so strung out but he seems to adapt well. Who doesn't like people who bring them gifts and spoil them? Those are my favorite people too. Below Will was trying to pose just like Uncle Chad; perhaps he can call him mini-me from now on. At the bottom, Will enjoys some one on one time with Aunt Rachel. Like any good aunt, she plays and plays and never gets tired. She has a babysitting gig anytime she wants to visit Virginia!

Wild animals galore! (Nebraska trip part 2)

Who knew that there were so many wild animals in Nebraska? Well we discovered them during this trip, both with our visit to the Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo and with Will's time spent with his cousins Andrew, Connor, and new baby Abby (finally a girl!) As soon as Andrew and Connor appeared, Will set to following them around, imitating every move, and practicing general ornery boy-ness. I would expect nothing less when with his cousins! While Aunt Allyson and Uncle Keith got to snuggle with sweet Abby, the boys bowled, played trains, jumped off couches, and more. It was beyond fun to see them all together. We even discussed the possibility of a Disney trip with the Thompsons in a few years. When the kids are a little less crazy (if that ever happens?) Below the boys play at Grandma and Grandpa's house. They took turns wearing the helmet and being the "batter" in a pretend game of baseball. Then Connor and Will set about fixing things around the house. They were very handy!










Our second wild encounter took us to the Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo with Grandma Charma (or Grandma Sue as Will calls her) and Aunt Rachel. I think the adults had as much (or more!) fun than Will. I hadn't been to the Henry Doorly Zoo since I was around 16 so, needless to say, things had changed quite a bit. We saw all the big sights, including the Lied Jungle, Aquarium, Biodome, and the new Butterfly Pavillion. Will was quite tired and cranky by the end of the day but it is an experience we all enjoyed. Thanks Grandma Sue and Aunt Rach for taking the day off to spend it with us! We had a blast. Below Will and Aunt Rach pose at the zoo. Later the group poses before we enter the Lied Jungle.




I have one more installment from our trip. Check back soon to see the rest of our pictures.

You can take the boy out of Nebraska...

So I'm finally getting around to posting some pictures from our trip to Nebraska. While we usually plan our annual trip for sometime in the fall/winter, this year we moved it up so William could fly for free one last time. (sniff, sniff) We had a crazy busy trip, as usual, but it was a lot of fun. There's something to this whole warm weather visit. We were able to do a lot more. Will played outside, searched around on Great Grandma and Grandpa Kreifels farm, and even went to the Henry Doorly Zoo. It was a very fun trip, more enjoyable now that Will is old enough to play with his cousins and interact a bit. To the left, Will is helping Great Grandma Irma pick vegetables from the garden. He got some potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, and onions. This boy who will never eat a carrot for me at home proceeded to eat almost an entire carrot that he picked from the garden before it was even time for lunch! I guess I'll have to recruit his help in my garden at home too. He was definitely excited about seeing where the veggies came from. Great idea, Great Grandma Irma! We were able to eat lunch with Great Grandma Irma and Great Grandpa Pat and it was a nice chance to catch up. Grandma Gigi, Uncle Brent, and Cousin Andrew even joined us. A nice surprise!


Keith and Will spend a little time on the farm seesaw. Will thought that was great. Like a daddy-powered amusement ride!









Here are four generations of the Kreifels family. I love pictures like this!







There is much more to come from our trip to Nebraska. Check back soon for another update and more pictures!

And he's two!

I know I promised some pictures from our Nebraska trip...and they're coming. But I figured since Will turned 2 this past Saturday (the day after we returned from NE), that takes precedence over everything else! Most days I can't believe he is 2 already. Time flies. But then he acts like a typical (terrible) two year old and it seems like the most natural progression in the world. :) We had several small birthday celebrations for Will while we were in Nebraska. When we returned, we thought we'd top it off with a final small celebration at home. No big birthday bash this year; instead Aunt Jill came down and we had cupcakes and opened presents. It was a perfect low key celebration.













Will got a TON of great gifts. (Thank you's to arrive shortly!) He loves everything he got, which is saying a lot since we got a wide variety of stuff. One of his favorites is the motorized firetruck that Aunt Jill gave him. Oh boy! It goes 2 mph, which is fast enough for him. He has to push a little button to make it go. The first time he rode it, even though he was pushing the button, he was so confused as to how he was moving when no one was pushing him. He'd push the button, go forward about a foot, then turn around real quick to see if someone was pushing him from behind. He had the most quizzical look on his face. So funny! I think he's got the hang of it now. And with his new fireman's hat, axe, and other accessories, he is ready to fight fires! When it is too hot to play outside with the firetruck (or new baseball set), he's been keeping busy with his new trucks, trains, books, various Elmo toys, Play-doh, and all of his other toys. I think I need more toy storage!!!


Since I don't get many opportunities to brag (ha ha ha), I'll fill you in on some of Will's two year old traits. He's changing daily but some of my favorite things about Will right now are as follows. 1. How much he talks! He's talking up a storm, saying lots of phrases and sentences. Some new ones are "I'll be right back" and "I need help." And if he doesn't get help right away, he says "Mommy, help me please!" 2. He's combining knowledge to learn even more. For instance, instead of just identifying a red toy or a triangle, he'll tell me he sees a red triangle. I actually had no idea he knew that much; I'm constantly amazed at how much he's learning on a daily basis. 3. He's started "reading" books to us! He obviously doesn't know how to read (we're not those weird people who try to teach our baby to read!) but he has memorized some of his shorter books and loves to show off his skills by reading them to us. He really loves books, which is a great passion to have. I hope that one continues.

Check back soon for pictures from our trip to Nebraska. I promise they're coming!

Daddy's Little Helper

Keith has spent the better part of the last year and a half whacking away at a tree stump in our back yard. Yes, really. He took it out with an axe, just like Paul Bunyan but with less flannel.









So the stump is finally gone, without the help of a stump grinder, but in its absence is a large patch of dirt. Keith decided to throw down some grass seed and see what happens. Luckily for Keith, Will is a great yard boy. A little apprentice of sorts. They spent an afternoon working up a sweat in the yard, raking the dirt piles, digging around in the shed, beating their chests like the manly men they are. :) It was so cute to see how serious Will was about helping. He did not want any help carrying his rake; he's a big boy who can do it all himself. He's growing up!



We are headed to Nebraska to visit the family this week. I'm sure it will be a whirlwind trip but a fun one. If we are on the ball this trip, we'll take lots of pictures for the blog. Check back in August to see how we did!