We Survived the Remodel!

We survived the remodel. After starting the project in October 2008 we are finally done! We are so thankful to be moved in and have plenty of room for the kids. It is nice to have small amenities like a bath tub. The kids can now sleep well through the night without waking each other up. We have more room to entertain and plan to take advantage of that.

Brooke really likes her "new big house" although when Wyatt makes messes she says "he's timing out in this big house" which means she thinks he should go in "time out". What is even cuter is that Wyatt loves time out. We'll sit him in the corner and look at him and he just grins and feels very special. :)

Veteran's Day

Brooke and Mommy went to the Veteran's Day parade today. We had a great time! Brooke told several of the Veteran's "thank you" as they came by in the parade. She sported her red,white & blue outfit made by Ahma.

Ross Perot was the gues of honor but her favorite participant in the parade was Ronald McDonald (thanks Kiki)!

After the parade we went to see Bebi & Chester (Poppy's Aunt & Uncle) in Duncanville. Chester looked outstanding considering he is in his 80's and just had double bi-pass surgery. He said they actually cleared him to drive today. Chester fought in WW II so it was nice to see him today. I explained to Brooke that he was just like the soldiers we had seen in the parade. Brooke told Chester "thank you" (for serving) and gave him an American flag. It was a priceless moment.

Halloween 2009

We had a great Halloween with the kids. They started Friday afternoon with trick or treating at the school. Brooke was dressed as Snow White with Wyatt by her side as the Happy dwarf. Papa and Elizabeth were there help with the kids and see them in action. Brooke's friend Cooper was a football player and Harrison was a pirate.

Saturday they went trick or treating with their cousin Dru. He was dressed as a big chicken which Brooke and Wyatt thought was very funny. They did a great job and Brooke remembered to tell the neighbors "thank you" for her treats. They looked so grown up going up to the neighbors house all on their own.

Other updates: We are on week 14 of phase 2 of the remodel and things are really coming along. We hope to move in by the first of December. I am exactly 4 months pregnant today so that should give us plenty of time to get in and get our routines back in place before the Chandlers grow to a family of 5! Thank goodness we will now have enough bedrooms and baths to hold us all!

Birthday Fun and Back House Adventures

There is so much to catch up on since our last post! We celebrated Wyatt's first birthday at Ahma and Poppy's with a Surfer Boy theme. We lucked out with one of the last pretty days of the season. The sun shined on all of us as we celebrated the big day.

In preparation for the party Wyatt got his first hair cut. Papa and Scott took him to D the official barber of the Chandlers. They used the clippers and everything. Wyatt was a big boy and enjoyed the event.

We continue to make the best of our adventure in the garage apartment as we wait for the remodel to be done. The kids are still taking baths in a little blue bucket and we are using a mini fridge that they've learned to access on their own. They've got in to just about everything they can in our 700 sq foot home.

They also discovered Scott's boots. The house is really coming together now. We'll post pictures soon showing the progress. We have walls, floors, tile, cabinets and doors. We even have a pantry. Each day we enjoy coming home to see what they've done. The trim and tile guys are true craftsman. They are taking their time and doing each little piece right. We hope to celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas in the house.

Green Day

This is a picture from a recent Saturday afternoon. Brooke declared it "green day" and everyone had to wear green. Scott was on board as long as we didn't have to do "pink day". We got Papa's picture too..Brooke approved of his yellow shirt.

The remodel is moving right along. They've put in the plumbing, electrical (at least part of it) and air conditioning. It is very exciting to see the progress they are making. The plumbers dug a huge trench in the back yard. Brooke promplty told the workers they had made a mess when we got home.

Brooke is transitioning well to her new classroom. She broke the new playground in with a big fall. She is well on her way to full recovery though. Her friends at school were very concerned about her injury. I think she liked TLC her classmates gave her.

Big Changes

Being in the backhouse is actually going well so far. We are on day 16. Bath time is a challenge. The babies are bathing weekends at the grandparents, Thursdays at Sue's and other weekdays in our blue bucket. They can't get the concept of the shower. They actually think the bucket is fun though.

We are getting the kids to bet a bit later. Being in one room makes it hard to stick to our original routine. One night while we were reading stories to Brooke I took this shot of all three of us in Brooke's tiny bed. You can tell it was late and we were tired but we were making the circumstances as fun as possible.

There is a lot of change in the Chandler house. First and most importantly both kids are hitting major milestones. Wyatt is walking and Brooke is almost fully potty trained. We are very proud! Brooke is getting ready to graduate to the 2nd floor at First Presbyterian for pre Pre-K. This means no diapers and they get to start Spanish and gymnastics. The other change (besides the obvious house remodel) is that Scott will be moving offices. Starting next week he will move from Akard St. to the big green building with me. He'll be just one floor away from me. This means there will be plenty of time for lunch together and it makes commuting even easier. Life is Good!

Morgan finally had her baby. She went 17 hours without pain meds and had a bouncing baby boy named Dillon. We are so happy for the Kennedy's. I couldn't put Dillon down once I starting holding him at the hospital. He is adorable! http://thedallaskennedys.blogspot.com/2009/08/dillon-stone-kennedy.html

Let Phase II Begin.....

Phase II has officially started. These pictures capture the demo done today. It is hard to see them take down every piece of the house. We are excited to start the project though!

Moving in to the back house has been a great adventure for the family. Brooke loves our "little house" in the back. We made a tent so she can have her own room. Only W is invited to her room. Here is a picture of him climbing in. (He is getting close to walking.)

We are on night five. The window unit brings the temperature down to about 82 degrees. Scott and I normally keep the house at 70 so we are working hard to adjust.

The babies are sleeping in diapers and I take a cold shower at night to cool down. Scott says I remind him of Blanche DuBois :). We eat dinner around a little table. Brooke likes it though because we can all reach each other when we hold hands for grace. The fridge, stove, trash can and cleaning supplies are within a 1 foot radius. There has to be some code regulations restricting that.

Brooke also likes the little mini fridge because she can reach her own juice boxes. We'll use the blog to update each phase of the remodel. I'm sure the newness of the back house will wear off and we will enlist the help of grandparents. For now we will enjoy the close family time and adventure.

I have to log out. The laptop is hot and I can't take it. :) I'm going to go stand next to window unit until the temp drops to 79.

Good Times

Life is good at the Chandler house. We have the green light to move forward on the home remodel. This means all four of us will be moving in to the back house this week. It will be full of fun and challenges as we squeeze in to the small space. Brooke and Wyatt have enjoyed the adventure of packing up the house. They spent most of the morning playing with the empty boxes. Brooke rediscovered her tutu and wore it all day with her red squeaky shoes and pajama shirt.

We video taped W eating peaches today. He loves them! He is ready to walk soon. He is active and can't wait to walk and run. I think he wants to talk too. Ahma already taught him the family catch phrase "I did it!".

Father of the Year

Scott has certainly earned the Father of the Year award for 2009. I am thankful to be with him every day and can not think of a better father. He is a great role model to Brooke and Wyatt and cares for them deeply. Anyone who has been around him knows that being a good father is his number one priority. I captured this picture one early morning before work. Whether it is 2AM, 6AM or 5PM after a long day of work Scott will stop what he is doing to direct 100% of his attention to his family.

We made Scott a hot breakfast on Father's Day and gave him two musical cards with a gift certificate. They were small items to show our appreciation but the true gift was the love Wyatt and Brooke showed. All day long Brooke said "Happy Fathers Day Daddy"!

I made breakfast a week or so later on a Saturday and we all sat down together...Brooke looked around and said "Happy Father's Day Daddy, Happy Father's Day Mommy". I think Brooke believes we only cook a hot breakfast on Father's Day. :)

Brooke's 2nd Birthday

Brooke's 2nd Birthday was a blast! She was very excited to see her good friends Luke, Harrison, Charlie, Cooper, Trip, Ella, Ava and Ross. All of her cousins came to share the day too. We had her dressed in her "fancy" dress and pig tails. She was also wearing a big girl necklace that her good friend Phoebe gave her.

The theme was perfect and everyone loved the lady bug and bumble bee bags that Ahma made.

Wyatt was a good sport all day long. We had worked hard to prepare for the party and made sure to pack everything we needed. We had a detailed list so we wouldn't forget anything. At the end of the party we realized the one thing we forgot....a bottle for Wyatt. He was a trooper though. Elizabeth walked him all around until he stopped crying and fell asleep.

Once we got home we opened the gifts and Brooke loved all of them. The gift bag from Momaw had a picture of Brooke on it. We've kept the bag in Brooke's room and she reminds us daily that that is her bag not Wyatt's. :)

Memorial Day

We had the annual Memorial Day party in Oak Cliff. We had a great turnout of neighbors and friends. Brooke is getting old enough to really enjoy the baby pool and party. She wasn't quite ready for the bounce house though. Maybe next year! Brooke wore her red,white and blue outfit that Ahma made and her new shoes from Papa and B-Beth. Both babies slept very well after a full day of activity. They are both learning new things every day. Brooke is talking in complete sentences and knows she is about to turn 2. Wyatt is crawling and pulling up.

Mother's Day

We had a wonderful Mother's Day. Wyatt spent the night at Papa and Elizabeth's on Saturday. It was his first full night away. Brooke spent the night with Ahma and Poppy. I think it was the first time Scott and I had a full nights sleep in over 7 months. It was great to start Mother's Day well rested. Brooke and Wyatt got me a very sweet card and a gift certificate. We all went to Bebi's church and Brooke and Wyatt did very well (thanks to a box of cherrios for Brooke). After church Bebi and Chester came over with all of the cousins for Mother's day brunch. We all crammed into the house and had a great time. Next year we hope to have more room to entertain everyone. Kim suprised Brooke and Wyatt with new Elmo blankies to sleep with. Brooke got so excited about her she fell asleep with it still in the gift bag for her nap.

Pizza Party

We started the weekend with a pizza party Friday with the Bacsiks and Freemans. I believe there was a Ranger game on but Mike was a great sport and watched "Elmo Sing Along" with the girls.

We actually got all 6 kids to sit still for a picture. I was laughing so hard most of the them didn't turn out because the camera was shaking. Anyway, you get the idea. Six little blessings all in the 1100 block of Clinton. We never have to worry about Brooke or Wyatt running out of things to do or kids to play with!

The Easter Festivities Continue

We completed the Easter festivities today despite the rain.

Brooke was what we like to call "good tired". She went right to sleep after a full day of Easter Egg hunts and festivities. It was a good thing too. With her daddy out of town I wasn't sure how she would do. She asked for him about 10 times. Aunt Kim printed off pictures of Scott and Charlotte North Carolina to explain where Daddy was. Brooke went to sleep with both pictures (priceless).

We kicked off the Easter events with a wonderful brunch from Chef B Beth on Saturday. The meal featured pancakes in the shape of a B. Papa hid Easter Eggs out front and gave everyone huge chocolate eggs with suprises inside.

We had an Easter Egg hunt with her cousins Saturday afternoon. The sun was shining and there were a ton of eggs to find.

We started Sunday morning with Easter mass at Incarnation. Brooke enjoyed the music so much she applauded and shouted "yea". We were a little embarrased but in a good way. Wyatt made it to the service too and received a blessing from the priest. After church we came back to Clinton Avenue for an Easter Egg hunt with Phoebe and Mary Grace. The girls loved the lolly pops Mr. Easter Bunny left behind.

We finished off the day at Ahma and Poppy's with brunch and plenty of play time with Megan and Dru. The kids drew a road with chalk so Brooke could drive her car in the drive way. The chalk design included landmarks like the Dallas Zoo, Nasher Center and Reunion Arena.

Our Baby is Growing Up

Danny sent this picture from a year ago. It is hard to believe how quickly our baby is growing up. Actually, it is hard to believe how quickly both babies are growing up. This time last year we were just sharing the news that Wyatt was on the way. Brooke will be driving before we know it. Audrey and Brooke were already getting started in the Jeep Saturday.






We are blessed with a great family to bring our babies up with. Mamaw actually got most of the kids to sit still for a group photo.


Left to right: Jay, Alexis, Brooke, Elijah, Audrey, Jasmine and Kayla (Wyatt was napping again :))