update and taking a break

who is who? same outfits, same drum-- can you tell? (answer at bottom)
I'm not too good at this blog thing, or keeping it updated, so I am taking a hiatus and from the computer in general (some people watch too much tv, I "watch" too much blog/facebook. In the meantime, hope the update helps! (PS-- I'm going to turn the computer off for at least a week, so if you need me, give me a call!)

Superman and Yoda at the arboretum


Superman!

The boys about to watch the UT/OU game

**Joseph is on the top, Matthew is on the bottom. =)

it's been a quick month....

Well, both boys are sleeping (which is an amazing thing!), so I thought I'd update our blog with what's been happening this month....
-Joseph has been sleeping better (although he has a cold right now, so he's not sleeping as good right now), and for the last 3 nights, the boys have slept in the same room! (Although, Joseph usually wakes up screaming at midnight because of his cold, so we bring him to our room-- but it's progress!)
-Matthew started his Mother's Day Out one day a week-- and is doing just great-- I love hearing from his teacher each week how good he does, and that he is well-behaved!
-Matthew is talking more and more-- and last night, he wanted some cookies, and I asked him, "what do you say when you want more cookies?" And he said "cookies, pease" (which is his word for please), and my heart just melted =).
-Brett and I actually had a date night a few weeks ago-- the cheapest date ever! We went and saw "Up" at the dollar movie, used a gift card at on the border, and then got some ice cream-- we had so much fun!
Everyday is a new adventure, but (most days) it's a lot of fun...

little blessings

Every night, we pray for dinner before we start eating. A few weeks ago, we were in a hurry to eat because Brett had to get to a meeting. So, when dinner was served, Matthew wouldn't start eating, and held out his hand-- he knew we were supposed to pray first-- isn't that wonderful!?!? We prayed together, and I silently thanked the Lord for the special moment from Matthew.

One last story--yesterday evening, we were getting ready to go to a concert, and Matthew points up to the table, and says Bible (which was still there from church). And then I had him take the Bible and go tell Daddy-- which he did as well. It's so nice to see all this repetition paying off! =)

team tooley hits hot springs

We just got back from a great week in Hot Springs, Arkansas. This was our first vacation for our family of four, and we had a great time getting away, not having to cook, clean house or do dishes! We didn't know what to expect with the boys, (driving, not being home, different foods), but they did pretty well-- our motto this week was- "someday we'll laugh about this!" We visited a beautiful garden, toured bathhouse row (can I just say I'm very thankful for our modern bathrooms!) Bathhouses were really popular in the early 1900's because of the natural hot springs there. There was a lot of tile, and personally, looked a little horror-movie-creepy to me, but it was very interesting! We also finished up the week visiting Lake DeGray, eating dinner there and walking around the "beach." Here are some pictures from our week:




we had the best homemade icecream-- they even had a little toddler-sized cone that Matthew loved!










we took this pic with the timer-- not too bad!

Matthew's 2nd birthday!

Well, I can't believe my "baby" is already 2! We had a fun party for him- complete with hot dogs, watermelon, and brownies (his favorite foods!). It was a wonderful evening with family and friends.


this was the best family shot we got!


my sweet Matthew


yummy cake!


Lions, elephants, and giraffes, oh my!


Blowing out his candle-- hooray!

ah..... change....

Normally, we put Matthew in his crib, and he goofs around and does anything not to go to sleep. This wasn't a big deal, because he finally gives up and conks out, but in the process, he's been kicking the bars of the crib so hard that we were afraid he was going to break it (and we sure don't want to have to buy a new one!) So, Sunday night, we moved him to his big-boy toddler bed. After two-hours of putting him back in his bed, he finally went to sleep. The last few nights have gone pretty well. Here's a pic from his first night....

Big Brother, Little Brother

Saturday evening, we went outside to take some pictures with the boys in cute "big brother, little brother" t-shirts that Nana and Grandpa bought them. I will say it was quite an ordeal, but we got a couple of cute pictures in the process!






doesn't he look ornery?!?

it's already been a month

My how time flies by when you're having fun, or maybe sleep deprived. The Tooley house is still in a little of a daze, but we're doing well with our new addition. Our biggest issue is that Matthew loves to touch/pinch Joseph's head (any ideas on stopping this?), but considering how his world has gone 180, that's not too bad. The sweetest thing is when Matthew will bring Joseph a blanket, or his pacifier, and give him a kiss. Two sweet little boys!


I just love this one! He's about 2 weeks old


Posing in his sleep! (about 2 weeks)


Hanging out with Mommy- took this last night-- trying to wear him out so we could get some sleep!


Joseph at 4 weeks- look at that smile!


we had to have one of Matthew!

He's Here!

Joseph Alan Tooley entered the world on April 3, 2009 at 2:35pm. He weighed in at 9 pounds, 4 ounces, and is 21.5 inches long. We are so excited he's here! We're all doing great, just a little sleep deprived!

Baby Joseph

Brett, Joseph and Erin

Matthew meeting his baby brother, and giving him a kiss =)

tomorrow is "d-day!"

That's right, tomorrow we'll be headed to the hospital very early in the morning to be induced. Please pray that everything goes well (and quick!). We'll keep you posted!

update on baby tooley!

Well, we went to our appointment last week, and our doctor said baby probably wouldn't be coming this week either-- so Friday (april 3), we're going to go ahead and be induced-- please be praying he'll come before then so I don't have to be induced this time! We'll keep you posted =)

We have a name!

That's right-- it only took 38 weeks for us to decide a name this time-- but we finally have one! Baby Tooley #2 will be:

Joseph Alan Tooley

Joseph means "God will increase", and Alan means "handsome"-- which is also Brett's middle name. We can't wait to meet him (hopefully very soon!)

I haven't decorated a cake since Matthew was born....

Well, it's been a while since I've decorated a cake-- but I'm pretty proud of how it turned out! We had a shower for my best friend Amanda last weekend-- below is the cake and the hostesses-- it was a ton of fun!






Isn't the grass fun?!?


Amanda at 28 weeks, and me at 38. Next picture, she'll have the bigger belly! =)

Murder Mystery from the 50's!

A week ago, our ABF class came over for an evening of bbq and playing this fun murder mystery game--we had the best time hanging out and finding the "murderer"!


the guys, looking so cool- Brett, Darron, Scott, Hulen and Jon

The beautiful gals-- Erin, Elaine, Sarah, Tonia and Nancy

where is baby Tooley?

Well, we are at week 37 this Friday-- and I am ready for this baby to make his entrance into the world! I think we're ready-- we have the bassinet all set up, the double stroller is ready to be used, and some sweet friends threw me a shower last weekend, so we've got diapers to get us rolling! (The shower was just wonderful, and I had a great time!). Here are a few pics from it =).



My good friend Amanda and I-- she's at 26 weeks and I'm at 36!

It's now official!

Well, I can finally post this blog..... Brett and I have been praying about this for some time, and have felt that it's time for me to step down as preschool/children's minister at our church. I'm really excited to be a full-time mommy, and have more time to focus on Matthew and baby Tooley (no, he doesn't have a name yet!) My official leaving date is March 20, so I'll wrap a few more things up and then get ready for baby! The church was really sweet this morning when it was announced. We are very blessed =)

Baby Tooley #2 update

Well, we went to the doctor today for my 32 week check-up (it really has gone by fast!) The doctor said everything looks good, and the baby is already at 4lbs, 12 ounces (which explains why I'm getting so big!) Here's a picture of the baby's head (and no, we don't have a name yet, but I think we're getting close!)

Erin's splurge of the week

Okay-- I know we didn't need it, but I wanted to get baby Tooley his own little outfit-- he has plenty of hand-me-downs from Matthew, but I wanted to get him something special to wear home from the hospital-- isn't it cute?!?! He's definitely going to be the cutest baby there =)

What Matthew's up to

Matthew continually makes us laugh-- all the time! His little smile just lights up every room-- and he can even charm the grumpiest of people at Wal-Mart!
Matthew's now walking and getting into everything-- Grandpa came over and installed more baby locks for us-- since Matthew's broken 2 of my footed cake plates already(that's a way to make more space!)
He's also saying more words- not as many as we'd like, but he did utter his first "no!" on Saturday. Brett and I were so excited it was a new word we're not going to worry about the "no" part yet!
Matthew is also a star basketball player already-- he can shoot the ball into the laundry basket like an old pro-- and of course, he loves the clapping everytime he gets the ball in!

We are enjoying the last few months just spending time with Matthew before baby arrives, and are amazed how much he learns and discovers each and every day!

Long time!

I know, it's been a while since I've written, so I'll try to catch y'all up with our little world! We had a wonderful Christmas, and visited my parents for 5 whole days! It was nice to have a break and have someone to watch Matthew a little. My brother and his wife also came up for a few days which was a lot of fun too.

January was quite interesting! Brett had a business trip with his job, and was in Chicago for 5 days-- you know the week when it was -10 degrees? Needless to say, he was happy to come home to our 45 degree weather!

We are now on week 32 of baby Tooley #2. This pregnancy has gone by SOOOO fast, and no, we still haven't picked a name yet! Once we are 100% sure, we'll spread the word!

Because our house didn't end up selling, Brett said I could do a few things to the house-- so I've been trying to get some stuff done before the baby's here (because I know it won't happen after that!)

We've had a great start to the new year, and are looking forward to April =)