Monkey Soup

New Blog Location

2009-05-15T08:52:00.000-07:00

We've moved:

http://monkeysoupoftheday.blogspot.com/

Thanks!

Relaxing Day

2009-03-09T15:12:00.000-07:00

It was a dark and stormy day so we stayed inside and watched a movie with our friend, Hogan!

Also, in other news, my male child sat at the table like a person instead of a wild amazonian ape. It's a banner day !

For No Reason...He's Just Cute

2009-02-23T16:59:00.000-08:00

MLK Day Volunteering

2009-02-06T16:11:00.000-08:00

For MLK day Kathryn's class went to the World Hunger Farm to do some general cleanup and winter planting. It was REALLY windy and cold but the kiddos didn't seem to mind.Miss Shell is making sure all the kids are listening to the instructions.

We met this guy on the way to get our buckets. He was very intimidating!

The class was in charge of picking up extra sticks and twigs. They had to get the garden nice and clean for the roto-tiller.

Kathryn is in the pink elfin hat...just so you know.

Jaden is working hard. Our bucket keeps overflowing!

Now it's planting time...

The kids listen to instructions and watch as an onion-planting is demonstrated.

This is Kathryn's little hand planting her onion bulb.

Amy, another parent-volunteer, shows the kids how to cover their bulbs.

At the end of the day...Kathryn, Mommy, and her best bud Copeland.

The Poppy Birthday

2009-02-04T07:34:00.001-08:00

We had all of our crafts ready...pots for painting!
Kathryn and Taylor being artistic.

Aidan was very methodical with his palette choice.
You can't really see, but the cupcakes have little flowers on them. Hello! Poppy Birthday!!

Miss Riley making her masterpiece.

Kim and Riley discussing possible motifs.

Evan putting on the finishing touches.

Kris Ann, Kathryn, and Taylor hanging out on the swings for a chat.

We hope you are enjoying pictures of the playscape, btw. Marcus and Grampa put it together over the weekends of January!

The Nance Family looking fabulous!

Grace, the artist.

I would NOT want to mess with these three. They look like trouble. Well, maybe not Charlotte. Heehee!

Tada! Full view or our awesome playscape.

Sweet wittle Cheeby.

Go get'em, Miller!

Pirkle Family Meeting. :)

Daniel takes swing duty for Kathryn and Aidan.

Avery and James hangin' on the seesaw.

After we wore ourselves out with cupcakes and revelry, we decide to sit back and chill'ax with a sucker.

Night Night !!!

Sorry about my limited pics, I was busy being the birthday mom. If anyone has any good ones, please email them to me. Thanks!!!

January Twenty-Eighth ...

2009-02-01T19:52:00.000-08:00

...before I begin with the detailed description of Hannah's Birthday Day, I must tell you that Baby James helped me spill a whole glass of water on my laptop this week...so I have limited scripting abilities. I can't use any of my numbers!

So back to the show:

We woke Hannah up Wednesday morning with lots of snuggles and kisses. She even got to eat "kid's cereal" instead of the healthy junk I usually make them eat. During her breakfast she got a round of presents from her family.

FAIRIES!!!

We kept taking breaks to have sugary bites of honeycomb.
Later that day we got busy making the cupcakes for Hannah's class.

Here we are putting in our fairy muffin cups.

Adding our ingredients...
We took a break to get our aprons on. The cupcakes won't turn out as well if we aren't fancy.

We let mommy use the mixer. My girls were never fond of loud noises.
While the cupcakes were in the oven we got some ribbon and did some wierd birthday poses.
Watching and waiting...
If anyone was wondering what James was doing while we baked...
After they were cooled we went forth with our plan to be as awesome as Martha Stewart, minus the pastels. At the Brooks household we are more into bright colors.
In your eyeball, Martha!!!

And then we had our own little mini-party with the extras. The rest went to Hanny's class.

Happy Birthday, Hannah Joy. Four years ago today our lives were blessed beyond our imagination. We thank God every day that you are here. WE LOVE YOU SO MUCH! But then again, what's not to love?

Movie Night

2009-01-26T06:29:00.001-08:00

So normally I wouldn't take a picture of us watching a movie. But this was too good not to share. First of all, I would like to explain that Kathryn is not wearing a shirt because she felt hot. So please forgive us for being urchins on a Friday afternoon.
Here is James filling up his dumptruck with popcorn.

and then eating it.

See food! Get it?! See food!!!!

and last but not least, can you tell what we were watching?

Part 2 - The Indoor Christmas

2009-01-25T08:35:00.001-08:00

This notebook was a special present from Kathryn's teacher, Miss Shell. It was the first thing she wanted to open.

Thanks to the Dingels for these great ears!

Well, Hannah, what do you think of your new Elsie book?That's what I thought.

Narnia was another big theme this year.

Hannah is holding a Susan figurine.
James was only interested in one of his presents...and a lot of the wrapping paper. That was pretty much it for him.
And, although I'm completely ashamed of her...my sister with her present.

Christmas Morning Highlights

2009-01-25T08:23:00.001-08:00

The high point of this year's Christmas extravaganza was our playscape! We diligently petitioned Santa (and Nana and PawPaw) for a brand new playscape just like we had in "Austintown". Santa (read: N & P) must have felt that the girls were indeed nice this year. We got a playscape that was way more rockin' than the one we had in Austintown. The old one is downright puny in comparison. But, as you know, Santa's sleigh is not built to accomodate an entire assembled playscape. So, being the clever fellow he is......sent us the pieces of the playscape along with detailed instructions. Over the last month it's been the job of Daddy and Grampa to construct the monstrosity that now resides in our backyard. Pictures coming soon! The snap above is the candid reaction of two little girls who just got what they wanted for Christmas! Thanks to Nana and Pawpaw (again) for the cutesie nightgowns!!!
Daddy shows them the parts.

They even came in Santa sacks!!!

School Christmas Program

2009-01-16T07:07:00.000-08:00

Goofing off in Nana's lap.

Getting in character...

James had to be entertained by Hannah's Aurora.

Hannah was not used to staying up this late. And who gave my 3-year-old a candle?!?

Family Pic.

BIG family pic! Mike, Johnnie, James, Jim, Jenna, Marcus, Meredith, Shelley, Kathryn, and Hannah!

Cute Holiday Pics Part 1

2009-01-13T13:35:00.000-08:00

No organization here: just fun.

The girls had their Christmas performance at church and did wonderfully. Lots of toddler drama but overall, good show!

Happy New Year!

2009-01-12T18:09:00.001-08:00

After being computer-less for over a month, WE'RE BACK! I'm happy to announce the computer is fixed and virus-free. Hopefully I will be uploading more pictures of our holiday events in the next few days. Stay tuned, sports fans.

Picture perfect..

2008-12-05T10:01:00.000-08:00

except for that giant cupcake in the way.

More Party Pics

2008-12-02T08:15:00.000-08:00

The Birthday Boy and his Daddy

The birthday sister trying on her stylin' hat

As you can see, our theme was "Green and Gold."

A little late...

2008-11-30T10:55:00.000-08:00

But here are a few pictures of James at his first birthday party!
His mama can't believe he's so old.
*sniff*

Summer 2005 Memories

2008-11-03T06:17:00.000-08:00

I found these old pictures of Katy when she was 2.
This was her little Mother's Day Out "summer class". Wook at that chubby face!

The little artist:

Here's little Hannah finding her diaper tabs.

Those big brown eyes...

*sniff* I miss my baby girls. They are getting way too big. ;)

Halloweener

2008-10-23T18:16:00.000-07:00

Aren't our tights awesome?

This is our scary face

Scary face with scary hands.

Don't ask me how we come up with this stuff....we're just creative geniuses is all. They are "Halloween Flowers".
See?! They pin on your shirt, or in this case, your Halloween Pajamas.

In the next entry we might see some bats and spiders. Don't be scared.

Happy 1st Birthday, James Wyatt!!!

2008-10-22T11:12:00.000-07:00

Thanks to "Auntie Shannon" from The Littlest DeLeon for the shirt! She even put "baby bomb" on it per my request. I also took his picture in it right away so you could see as clean as it will ever be. :)

Happy Birthday, sweet boy.

Part 3 - The Finale

2008-10-18T19:29:00.001-07:00

James wasn't really interested in the swing.
Twigs are way more interesting.

Look at his hair! This kid is going to be a problem...
...I can tell.

Hannah deemed the event a success. (She got those rockin' sunglasses out of the pinata, which couldn't take a picture of because I had to hold a plate full of destroyed cupcake for James.)
Don't judge me!!!

Party Pics Part 2

2008-10-18T19:24:00.001-07:00

Ta Da! This was the awesome cupcake cake for the
grown-ups.

This was Hannah's first cupcake. I am holding it for
her because it started to fall apart, causing much anguish
and threatening tears!

Kathryn hanging out with the "older" kids and having
some punch.

I'm not really sure what to say about this...

Birthday Party Saturday! (part 1)

2008-10-18T19:14:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday to our little friend, Charlotte!

This is a picture of the girls before the party. I knew the theme was cupcakes so I wanted to get a "clean" picture before we set them loose. This is worth clicking on just to see a close-up of their expressions. :)

That's my son...eating cupcake crumbs off of the ground. Nice parenting, Dad. :)

Part Deux of the Hannah Showcase

2008-10-16T09:19:00.000-07:00

Cleanliness is overrated

2008-10-16T07:43:00.000-07:00

So I was looking through the pictures to find some of James in which he was clean. These are the closest I could find. He's only got drool on him in these.
I can't believe my baby is almost one!

A Hannah Photoshoot

2008-10-15T06:41:00.000-07:00

Old Pics

2008-10-10T14:09:00.000-07:00

First Day of School Pictures
She was really excited about her uniform.

Totally-ready-to-conquer-kindergarten pose

Nueces Part II

2008-10-10T14:06:00.001-07:00

Me, Baby James, and over-sized accessories.

Family Outing on the Nueces River

2008-10-09T09:40:00.000-07:00

Here's one of our little fishes! We took turns touching them.

Black is the new Dora

2008-10-09T09:22:00.000-07:00

Learning is Adorable

2008-10-09T08:27:00.001-07:00

Dress Up - Early June

2008-08-07T07:12:00.000-07:00

Fancy Ladies!! Those are aprons from my great grandmother. They have been carefully preserved and protected all of these years so that they could be passed down as treasured gifts from the past. So, you know, I gave them to my toddlers to play with. Kathryn likes to "pose" and it always turns out that the poses require closed eyes...and a weird hand gesture. She also likes props, such as fake potted plants or wands. Hannah is content to be lovely without any frills and furbelows.

Kathryn's Creative Movement Performance - end of May

2008-08-07T06:32:00.000-07:00

I'm not really sure what to say about these pictures. :) Kathryn is the one in the middle. I tried to get pictures of the front of her about 40 times. There weren't many times she was facing me close up. She kept turning her back and spinning around every time I would get close to a good picture! The entire thing was pretty hilarious. The teacher would say, "Be a tree, you're a tree!" And they would be trees. Then they would "get their own space" and be a seed. It just went on like that. The music was also very hippie-esque. They would freeze and their faces were so serious. You could tell they had practiced hard. :)

It's been a long, long time...

2008-08-06T15:54:00.000-07:00

As everyone already knows, we've moved and have spent the last few months getting settled and unpacked. I have been getting a large amount of hate mail from my friends and family about updating this blog. I finally found the cord that goes from the camera to the computer. So, without further delay....Summer Memories!!!

This was in May. Kathryn still had her long hair and Baby Bomb was only 6.5 months old. We're at the ranch looking picture perfect.

Ok, so now we're starting to lose the moment. Kathryn wants to leave and I'm trying to get her to get back in the picture. Hannah has no idea what to do with James who is flailing around wondering why I am not holding him.

We are now in stage 3. K. has totally given up on us but Hannah is bound and determined to look adorable for the camera. James is seriously about to lose it.

Now we're pouting until further notice.

The Silly Dance

2008-04-07T10:35:00.000-07:00

Springy Weekend at the Gwamparwents

2008-04-07T10:22:00.000-07:00

Katy, Hannah, and Cousin Josie playing in the backyard and picking dandelions and attempting to climb a tree. :)

Snake info

2008-04-03T07:50:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the motion sickness...

Spring Break with the Cousins!

2008-04-03T06:47:00.000-07:00

We had a great time at Josie and Caleb's house. These are from last month. As some of you know, March was the month of illness and I never want to speak of it again.

We had pinkeye, upper stomach woes, lower stomach woes (ew), and head colds all in one month. These pictures were taken just before the horrors began. :)

These are the cute bunny jammies we got from Nana!

I call this picture "Brooks Chicks"
:)

Falling Asleep part 2

2008-04-03T06:45:00.001-07:00

Apparently, falling asleep in odd positions is Hannah's "thing".

The Steward-Brooks Reunion Pics

2008-03-07T04:00:00.000-08:00

Thanks to "Auntie Lauren" for the lovely pictures of ALL of our children. Note the classy BU tees. First we have "The Boys", Aidan and James.

Next on our list, "The Girls":

Then we have "The Babies", James and Avery. These were lucky shots right before the screaming began.

And for the first time in history...all of our children together. Again, right before screaming.

Life is Rough

2008-02-24T18:09:00.000-08:00

Hannah maintained she did NOT need a nap. No, indeed.
She decided to fall asleep mid-play.

The Super Seat

2008-02-09T11:43:00.000-08:00

Long time no post! A certain friend of mine has been hounding me for pictures of the "super seat". Apparently, Bumbos were recalled because they didn't print "do not perch your infant in high places" and "do not staple your child to this seat" on their box. I was so disappointed because I really wanted something James could sit up in. He's constantly trying to "get away" and can't stand to recline. So, in the place of the infamous Bumbo, I give you....the super seat:

Hannah - 11 Months Old

2008-01-31T03:59:00.001-08:00

I thought these were so cute,
Baby Hannah! Kate is about 2.5 in that picture.
I remember this day because I took them both to
Whole Foods for lunch for some reason unknown
to me now.

I'm also not sure why all of this is underlined,
but I really don't know how to fix it.
:)

The Pink Party - Part I

2008-01-30T08:03:00.000-08:00

Well, I know everyone has been waiting in suspense for pictures from Hannah's 3rd birthday. I, being the slacker-mom that I am, have just uploaded them. I am working on sorting through, organizing, and editing them. (red-eye is a real problem in this family)

So, to get things rolling I give you...the pre-party interview:

Also, I am still receiving pictures from other party guests so they'll be along later. If you have any pictures and you haven't sent them to me...do it! Here's some great shots from "Cousin Sarah". :)

More Ballet Pics

2008-01-24T08:04:00.001-08:00

These are some of the stills I took of the girls in their little ballerina tutus. The tops are some kind of purple velvet. Those tights are the ones that go with their blue-striped dresses, but they worked for warmth in this case. The girls, when given a choice, always pick out the most elaborate outfit possible. Their other choice was a black leotard with pink tights. Yeah right, mom. Who needs basic black when you can have sparkley tulle and purple velvet?

Ballet

2008-01-23T16:50:00.000-08:00

Dance classes began last week for the girls. They take a combination class of tap, ballet, and gymnastics. Here's a small clip of the awesomeness:

Kate and Austin

2008-01-21T13:37:00.000-08:00

For those of you who aren't aware, Kate has a boyfriend at preschool. Although Kate hasn't been ready to "define the relationship" just yet, her teachers, family, and friends are pretty certain of their status. The following are just a few excerpts from her discussions about Austin:

"I have to wear my green shirt today because Austin likes it when I wear my green shirt."

and

"I'm going to marry Austin when I grow up but he doesn't know so don't tell him. It's a surprise!"

and finally

Mom: "Kate, you really shouldn't be so bossy to Austin."
Kate: "It's ok, he likes that."

Didn't you know?

2008-01-18T16:44:00.000-08:00

Sweater vests are totally back.

Poor little crusty nose, too!

Hannah...but mostly me laughing.

2008-01-17T13:54:00.001-08:00

Jammie Day

2008-01-17T11:56:00.001-08:00

The girls decided they wanted to wear their new pajamas all afternoon. Baby Bomb got in on the action, too.

Then I annoyed them with more photag demands...