Fast Forward to Summer

It's been a few months since I've made a post. A lot has happened since February, so here is a quick summary of what we have been up to.

Brady celebrated his second birthday in April. His favorite birthday gift was an Elmo helium balloon from the dollar store. To celebrate, we went out for pizza and got Rita's for dessert.

The boys and I took a trip to St. Louis and Kansas City at the end of April, where we visited with friends and family. It was quite the challenge flying with the boys by myself, but I enjoyed watching Brady on his first plane ride. The boys had birthday parties in each city, and really enjoyed seeing everyone. While we were in St. Louis, Logan celebrated his fourth birthday.

After returning from our trip, we had a third birthday party for the boys at our house with all their friends. It was a red fish blue fish theme, and the boys had a blast.

We made a BIG announcement in May. Our family is expecting baby number three, and can't wait to meet the new member of the Alger family in January. After a rough first trimester, filled with nausea, I'm excited to be in my second trimester in hopes that I will start feeling better soon.

Enjoy all the photos.

Logan enjoying the park.

Brady at the park.

Brady's first plane ride to St. Louis.

Uncle John teaching Brady his tricks.

Brady wanted to join the zebras at the STL Zoo.

Easter at grandma and grandpa's house.

Hanging out with grandma, grandpa and the cousins.

My favorite picture of our time with the Sobeys. Logan and Jenna couldn't get enough of each other.

Birthday at grandma and grandpa's.

Brady with grandpa and great grandpa.

Logan's best birthday gift ever.

Red fish blue fish party.

Water balloon fun.

I LOVE My Boys

I love my boys. They make me laugh and smile. Brady and Logan love to be goofy, and they surprise me everyday with the things they learn. Logan loves to ask questions and learn about everything I do. His favorite question is "Why?" All day long he asks why I am doing things and why things are the way they are. I must answer the best I can, because he remembers every word I say. Brady is my expert climber. He is figuring out how to reach anything he desires, and he has amazing balance. He has also become a pretty good basketball player. If Brady is outside, you will find him with a ball, shooting hoops in our little basketball net. He will stand there for ever, shooting ball after ball.

The boys and I had a good Valentines Day. We celebrated with heart shaped strawberry marshmallows and dressed in red. Although Chris refuses to celebrate such a commercialized holiday, he surprised me with a new red pot with red and white tulips for our front porch. Logan enjoyed his preschool Valentines party. Between the party, grandma and grandpa's goodie box and a box of treats from Mary and Carl (our old neighbors), the boys have enough treats to last them for months.

Lately, I've had the desire to create things. I've been spending my nap times baking, painting and sewing. It's been fun to explore my creative side again. My favorite creation is my giant pear painting. I really wanted a pop of color for our kitchen, but couldn't find what I was looking for, so I created it myself. Check out the photo below.

We have a praise! Someone made an offer on our house, and we are getting close to closing on it. Chris and I are feeling relieved that we will soon be down to one mortgage payment. Although we don't understand why it took so long to sell, we are praising God for his faithfulness. We have been truly blessed through the whole moving process, and can see God's hand in all that we have been through.

Brady, the basketball star.

Logan and I on Valentines Day.

Brady making a noodle necklace at Logan's preschool Vday party.

My serious little man stringing noodles.

My pear painting and pink cupcakes for a girls night.

My little taste tester.

Logan and Brady's first slumber party with their friends, Jack and Ethan.

My climber. I have no idea how he balances on the wobbly toy.

Snow and Stuff

We have had 2 snow storms in Jacksonville, bringing us a few inches of snow. Our neighbors told us that snow is rare here and this is an unusually cold winter for Coastal Carolina. The city is not prepared for weather like this, so when it snows, the whole town shuts down. After the last snow storm passed by, they closed the base where Chris works, so we all enjoyed two snow days together. While it was fun, I'm excited for it to warm up again.

I already had to say good bye to one of my good friends. I knew I would meet tons of great military people, who would eventually have to move to another base, but didn't realize it would be so soon. We met Lacey when we moved into our apartment, and enjoyed hanging out with her and her husband Jerrod. They received orders to move to Maryland, so the boys said their farewells to their favorite babysitter, and I now have a friend to go visit near Washington DC.

Brady is doing more and more these days. He has several words in his vocabulary, and he is so smart. Check out his video below.

Family snow day.

Playing in the snow for the first time this winter.

Brady Bear is so amazed by the snow.

Our snow covered home.

Logan helping daddy.

Snow in our backyard.

My last night with Lacey, before she moved to Maryland.

Some of Brady's words.

Christmas

We had a great Christmas this year. Being with all our extended family would have made it even better, but we enjoyed spending a quiet time together as a family, followed by a visit from my parents.

The boys made things fun this year. They are both great ages to watch opening presents and participating in the other fun traditions. Logan was overjoyed to receive the remote control train that he has been asking for since August, and Brady loved his tool bench.

We really enjoyed the visit from my parents. Logan and Brady were so excited to have grandpa and grandma here, and they were spoiled the whole time. It was fun to show my parents around town and take them to the beach.

In front of our Christmas tree.

Logan's preschool Christmas program.

Logan excited about the gifts on Christmas morning.

Brady was very serious about opening gifts.

Brady's new weed eater.

GeoTrax Train.

Celebrating Christmas with my parents.

Brady was very nice to share his new Rudolph chapstick with everyone.

On the beach with grandpa and grandma.

Royals fans.

Christmas is Almost Here

Christmas is almost here, and we have been busy with celebrations and activities. Chris and I had a good time at our church life group Christmas party this past weekend. It was our first time out without kids since June.

We went to the Marine Christmas party yesterday. Logan and Brady saw Santa and had their picture taken. Brady was not so happy this year, as you can see below. Logan didn't want to sit on his lap, but he let Santa know that he wants Team GeoTrax for Christmas. Chris and I have been hearing about Team GeoTrax (a toy train) for months now. Logan talks about it all the time, and even prays for it every night before bed.

We started on our Christmas cookies already. I have had lots of help from Logan. Every time I get out a recipe, he grabs a stool and wants to help. Logan decorated Santa's cookies with lots of sprinkles and icing. Yum.

With so much focus on Santa and presents, Chris and I decided to start a new tradition with the kids this year. We have been talking more about the true meaning of Christmas with the boys, and chose to get them each three gifts to represent the three gifts that Jesus received. Hopefully this will give our gift opening some meaning and put more focus on Christ when we explain it to the boys.

My Body for Life challenge is over. I made it through the full 12 weeks of eating healthy and working out. Now that it's over, I plan on keeping it up, but allowing for a few extra treats during the holidays. I was able to lose quite a bit of fat and change my body shape. It's feels so good to be healthy.

Crying or no crying, you must have a picture with Santa.

The Marine Christmas party.

Daddy must play this game every night.

Mommy and Logan time.

Logan's cookies for Santa.

Brady was mad he couldn't touch them all.

Matching sweater buds.

Settling In Again

We are finally feeling settled in. Chris and I have been working hard on unpacking and organizing. It's so nice to be able to hang pictures on the walls and make this place our own.

Our first house guests came a few days before Thanksgiving. The Sobey family, our good friends from Lee's Summit, stayed with us for a few days on their way to South Carolina. Logan and Brady were so excited to see their friends, and I enjoyed seeing my best friend, Stacia. We took them to the beach and enjoyed a beautiful 70 degree day playing in the sand.

It was a little hard being away from family for Thanksgiving. We missed seeing everyone and all the traditions. Our new friends, the Hornsby Family, had us and another military family over for a potluck Thanksgiving meal. Having friends to spend the holiday with was such a blessing.

Logan with the Sobey kids.

A family beach photo.

Jen and Stacia.

One of the many military helicopters that fly by every day.

New House New School

We moved again! It's so nice to be back in a house. We moved in over a week ago, and love being here. God has really blessed us with with an amazing home, and we look forward to having people stay with us. With that said, I'm missing my friends and family so stinkin much, so start booking your flights. Seriously, let me know when you would like to visit. Did I mention we are just a few minutes from the beach? I included a few new house photos below.

Logan had his first day of preschool yesterday. I can't believe he is that old. He loved school, and is ready to go back. When we got home, Logan walked around like he was big stuff and Brady followed him around. It was too cute.

Our new finished house.

Logan is showing you his new playroom.

The living room and kitchen.

The master bedroom.

Logan's room.

After giving the tour of the house, Logan wanted me to take more pictures of us.

Spaghetti and chocolate pudding face.

The Children's Museum in Wilmington.

Halloween boys.

Mr. big boy. First day of school.