Daddy Daycare

As an Environmental Educator, April is a very busy month. Why, you may ask?....Because of Earth Day! We celebrate Earth Day all month with offering a slew of programs at Chimney Rock. I have started working with Chimney Rock Park part time and it has been wonderful. I had quite a few programs this week and Josh decided to stay home and watch the boys. It worked out great as we didn't have to pay for childcare and Josh got to spend time with the crazy kids. They all had a blast and took full advantage of Mom not being home. As you can see from the pictures, clothing was optional....

Apparently, cribs are not necessary for naps. Just a blanket on the hardwood floor.

Naked wrestling in the dog bed???

A little naked reading. As a side note...Josh managed to install a new back door and get rid of our old sliding glass door. Yippee!! (pictured above)

Black Mountain Easter Egg Hunt

This weekend was the Black Mountain Easter Egg Hunt! Despite the cold temperature and Josh being deathly ill, we had a blast (well, Josh didn't but he was a trooper). The festivities included a bounce house, fire truck, police car, clowns making balloon creatures, music and the Easter Bunny. Grady loved every minute of it and Myles just wasn't sure. Look at him eyeing that rabbit! He kind of freaks me out too....

Mom and the boys with the Easter Bunny. Notice Grady's balloon sword. He just had to have one. A balloon dog just would not suffice.

Grady with his "booty".

Myles was not into the Easter egg hunting. He was content swinging his basket around and playing in the dirt.

Grady checking out the fire engines "smoke pipes".

Grady was looking all too comfortable in the back of the police car. Look at the sparkle in his eyes. He is going to be a trouble maker!

Hanging on to the fire engine

My Chefs

I am so fortunate to have a husband that loves to cook. It seems as if Grady is taking after him. He loves to help Dad in the kitchen. I'm sure, any time now, they will all be laughing about my cooking. It is kind of a running joke in the Scala household. Believe me, I can't even cook a grill cheese without screwing it up. Despite my best efforts, I can't seem to get it right. Or maybe it's the fact that Josh stands over my shoulder asking things like, "Are you going to add salt to that?" or "Are you following the directions?" These comments usually end in me yelling and leaving the kitchen. SO....I will leave the cooking up to the men in my house. I can't complain!!!!

Yesterday, Josh decided to make homemade ravioli. They were stuffed with two kinds of cheese, spinach and ground meat. Delicious!!

Grady was very interested in the entire process. He loves "ravinolis"

Check out the Chef in the making

Here he is "helping" me make a snack for his class. We had to make a special St. Patty's treat. We decided on chocolate covered pretzels with green chocolate. (Okay, I can manage to melt chocolate chips and stick a pretzel in it!)

This is a funny pic I took this morning as G was eating a bagel with cream cheese. Notice his poor nose. He has had cold for 3 weeks which has resulted in a bloody nose. It's awful!

While little Moo can't cook yet, he can still run around the house looking adorable.

King Moo the Great

Myles is such a trip!! He loves to wear Mardi Gras beads and more recently, a cape. When he wakes up he grabs his beads out of the toy basket and lovingly puts them around his neck. To complete his ensemble, he finds his blanket and hands it to me. I have to put it around him like a royal robe. Then he parades around the house, laughing hysterically. I may not have a girl but I do have a boy that likes to play dress up!!

It's pretty hard to walk with all that BLING around your neck!

King Myles the First of Black Mountainshire

Taking a break....looking so good is hard work.

He switched out the cape for Grady's frog boots. They are about 4 sizes too big but he insists on wearing them.

Science Center

It was a nasty, rainy Friday so me and the boys decided to meet up with my great friend, Kelly. Kelly and I were park rangers together at South Mountains State Park. She is expecting a baby boy in August so she got some practice chasing mine around for a few hours. Kelly is wonderful with the boys and Grady just adores her!! He eats up all her science knowledge. She is one of the only people that doesn't talk to him like he is a baby. He thinks she is super cool. I also got to unload a ton of baby and maternity clothes. I filled her car to the brim with baby stuff!! It was so nice to clean house!

Kelly lives about an hour away, close to Hickory. They have a great science center in Hickory and Grady always asks to go there. We met Kelly, had a picnic lunch (inside), and enjoyed the science center.

The whole gang

Mutant Ninja Turtle

Moo thought it was hilarious to growl at the bear.

The spinning seat was SO much fun. The boys wanted to do it over and over.

Conversation with a 2 year old

Today when I picked G up from school, his teacher said he got in trouble today. He was playing and when she asked him to get ready to go home he said "NO!" Well, he knows that he isn't supposed to say that to his parents or teachers. She made him get ready to go and he was so upset. The nerve of someone telling him what to do....(his usual attitude)

When we were driving home Grady said, "Mom, lets not tell Dad about what happened at school today, okay?" It was so funny to hear this tiny little guy say that. He sounded like a teenager! He is a riot! I don't know what we are going to do when he IS a teenager???

Here is the little devious monster in is favorite outfit...anything without pants.

Happy First Birthday, Myles

Little Myles turned 1 on February 19th!! We were out of town on his big day so we decided to have a party for him the following weekend. There were about 20 people that were invited to celebrate with us, both friends and family. Unfortunately, the morning of the party arrived and Grady woke up puking!! We had to call it off. He had a nasty stomach bug complete with throw up and "dye-a-rina". At least Myles was too young to realize he didn't get a party.

We were lucky enough that Josh's mom and Peter were here for the big event. They bought him some great puzzles, a cake and a big balloon (his favorite present). Thank you for making Myles birthday so special, Shelley and Peter.

We can't believe Myles is already one. The year has gone by so quickly. He is such a sweet soul. He's quite, reserved, and loves to soak in his surroundings. Myles is also the BIGGEST mama's boys I have ever seen. I can't walk out of a room without him screaming but at least it means he loves me!! He is a lover and just learned how to give kisses. It's too cute. I can't wait to see his personality develop. We LOVE you, Myles!

Thanks for the great puzzles, Gramma and Grandpa.

Poor Grady, passed out on the couch. Love that hair, G. He was so sick that he didn't even want any cake!

Myles went in for the cake before it touched the table.

He made fast work of that chocolate cake.

One of Myles favorite things to do is to sit in his chair and be covered with his animals. He adores stuffed animals and loves to be surrounded by them.

Little Moo