Two little Monkey's Jumping on the Bed...

Some weeks are good weeks and some aren't so great. This happens to be the latter. Aubrey and Owen have decided bedtime is the new "play and destroy" time. They dump their hamper, pull clothes from the closet, rip stuff off the walls and jump on their beds. Grrrrr.... Today at nap time, I hear Aubrey yelling, "Mama, Owen bit me." So, I walk into their room to find two naked twins, one with a clear bite mark on her back. Now I'm the lucky mom of a biter...great. I put their diapers and clothes back on and shut the door. Not only 5 minutes later I hear diaper-like ripping sounds, so I head back in their room and sure enough they're both buck naked again and jumping on their beds while singing "The Wheels on the Bus". Here's a picture of their room from earlier this week.

I guess having one child sleep is better than none. Thanks Aiden!

Nana and Papa Jim Visit!

We all got to see Nana Nikki and Papa Jim last weekend. It's been a year since we've seen them, so they were anxious to see the kids. I think they were amazed at how much they've changed in a year. Last year, Owen wasn't walking, Aubrey was just saying a few words and Aiden was a newborn with bright red hair. Now we have a running Owen who doesn't stop moving, Aubrey is a talking machine and a bright blonde headed 15 month old. Taylor also came down for an afternoon and I think Aubrey was the most excited about that. She loves watching Taylor and trying to copy her. It's pretty cute. Here's some pictures from their visit.

Not sure when we will get to see them again, but they're enjoying this blog to keep up to date with all the happenings of the kiddos' lives.

A Sampling of Aiden's vocabulary!

So Aiden's vocabulary is slightly ridiculous, but I couldn't capture every word in one video, so here's the .
best I've got. And for the record, his first word was "mama" but he is slightly mad at me for leaving him at home with Daddy for the weekend, so I'm being subjected to the silent treatment from him :( He's a sensitive little red!

Daddy Flew Solo for the Weekend!

This past weekend Adam got to experience single parenthood while I got to take a short trip to Chicago with some of my best girlfriends. Amy, Alicia and I took off on Friday morning to meet our friends Aftin and Greta for a weekend of shopping, drinks, beach and fun. It was a great trip and I already miss the ladies, but I was excited to come back home on Sunday and see my troop. Adam fared pretty well all weekend. It was HOT all weekend, so that made it a little harder to get the kids outside, but he had some help from our family to keep the kids entertained. Papa Mark and Mimi brought over dinner Saturday night and played with the kids and Papa Bill and Gwen brought lunch over Sunday. Uncle B and Leigh also swung by, so he appreciated all the support over the 3 days. I came home to huge smiles and hugs from all the kids, but Aiden was a little upset with me. My little mama's boy suddenly was giving me the silent treatment and would walk right by me and go to Adam all night...grrr. That's his typical behavior toward Adam, so I guess I got a taste of my own medicine. I'll have him back to being my cuddle bug soon... :)

Some of the latest pics...

Aiden, aka "the child who throws everything away"

Aiden in his cowboy hat we made at Toddler Time at the Library

Aubrey checking over her baby "Dolly"

Owen found a new favorite spot...our dryer.

Aubrey's new favorite phrases include, "Are you kidding me?" "delicious" and "Aubrey's buck naked." Her obsession with her dolls has gotten a little crazy. She now puts diapers on them and wants to change them and take off their clothes...all the time. If Owen or Aiden takes Dolly, she melts quickly.

Owen's vocabulary has taken off. He now says, "Thank you very much" along with many other phrases. The tackling of Aiden has improved a little (woo hoo)! He still wants to be outside all the time, even though it's been a heat index of 100 + degrees for the past week.

Aiden now says and points to, Big Bird, Ernie, hat, Aubrey, Owen, pabi (pacifier), daddy, up, Mimi, and thank you. He's getting some serious new teeth, so he's been a little sensitive lately :)

Happy 30th Birthday Daddy!

Adam is now officially in his 30's :) He seems to be taking it in stride and isn't too upset about this milestone. We celebrated on Wednesday by making him a chocolate cake (by the looks of this cake, I don't think I will be joining the cast of Cake Boss anytime soon) and biscuits and gravy for dinner.

Owen enjoying the chocolate cake.

Who loves cake?

I LOVE cake!!

 

Aubrey stayed the most clean of the trio.

Adam and I got to go out and celebrate sans kids on Saturday night. Mimi and Papa watched the kids, while we hit up Rookie's Sports bar in Clive with lots of Adam's friends. After Rookie's, we ventured over to Kenny's Pub in Waukee where we witnessed some amazing karaoke (note the sarcasm)! It was a great night and can't wait to celebrate mine next year....OK, maybe not so much :)

We have some Waterbabies!

This past weekend marked the first time boating for the kiddos. I wasn't sure what to expect, but they LOVED it. Owen became quickly obsessed with wanting to drive the boat (scary thought) and Aubrey had fun running up and down the aisle and watching the waves. Aiden was the least excited...at 14 months, the life jacket comes up pretty high around his neck, so he was a little uncomfortable. He fell asleep within 20 minutes, then woke up in time for a picnic on the boat. The kid doesn't miss a meal :)

Here are some pictures from the trip:

Happy 4th of July!

Another busy holiday weekend has passed in the Povah household. We were fortunate to have great weather all weekend, so spent most of the holiday outside with friends and family.

We took a trip to Ashby Park for a little swim Friday night. Aiden has no fear of the water and often puts his whole head under then emerges happy and laughing. Owen prefers to walk around the pool in search of a ball to play with, while Aubrey likes to splash around and enjoy the water.                                                                                                                                                 

A smooch between the twins and Aiden playing with the sunscreen before the pool.










Our friends, Shane, Lauren and Alaina Jacobson, had a going away party on Saturday night. They're moving to Vermont, so we're going to miss spending time with them, but are hopeful we can make a trip out there in a year or so and they have promised to come back to Iowa often.

We got to see Chris and Melissa for a little while on Sunday late afternoon. Taylor was off at camp, so we missed her, but Owen got to show off his mad ballin' skills and Aiden got to show off his walking. Sunday night we took dinner over to the Hackfort family to help welcome baby Alexandra. Alex was born June 20th, so we're excited to have another playmate join the Florence Street Gang. Owen loves Matt and often yells, "Hi Matt!" whenever he sees him and Aubrey loves spending time with Charlotte. They've become great friends and the kids are always wanting to play with her.

Monday was the 4th, so we hit up the Urbandale Parade with the Varcoes and other friends. This is the second year we've joined them in watching the parade. Evan and Owen could play together all day...literally, so we love to spend time with them and they've become great friends to us. The parade watching was HOT, but fun. The kids loved the firetrucks and music blaring from the cars. We even had a solo Bosnian woman decide to join our group during the parade. She spoke little English, but what we did understand was "Baby need candy," and off she went to grab candy for all the kids. We called her "grandma" and she was super friendly and in the love with all the kids. It was pretty entertaining to watch her scavenge for candy, frisbees and anything else that was thrown out during the parade. Later in the day, we went up to Centennial Park and the kids playing in the giant bounce houses and slides. We met Papa and Mimi there and they had fun playing with them and eating some delicious kettle corn. Overall it was a great, but busy weekend.

New tricks the kids have learned...when you ask Aubrey how old Mimi is, she responds, "100" and Papa is "old"...super funny :) She also claims her favorite singers are, Bieber, Gaga and Katy Perry and often asks to listen to them. She can count to 14 and is still copying everything you say. She has also learned that our names are not just Mommy and Daddy, but Erin and Adam. She LOVES to call daddy Adam and thinks it's hilarious. She will ask me, "Where's Adam at?" all day long.

Check out my shoes Mommy!

Owen has been spending a ton of time playing baseball. He has a tee in the backyard and can spend all day hitting balls from it. He's pretty good. I took them to the Waukee library for Toddler Time last week and numerous moms were amazed at his eye-hand coordination and how well he throws and catches a ball. Maybe someday we'll have a little Redsox on our hands...

Crazy boy.

Aiden is just happy and goofy. He is super smart and now says, "Lola" "Papa" "Cookie" "Night night". He actually starts crying after dinner and yells, "Cookie, cookie" if he doesn't get a sweet treat...no idea where he got the sweet tooth :) He's such a sweetie and has been a great baby, even with teething. He has started to throw temper tantrums though (which is quite funny at 14 months) and lays on the ground and slams his legs and feet down. He has a quick temper and melts fast, but also recovers easy. Oh, to be 14 months again!

  Aiden loving on the cat and cheesing it up!