Elliott sings

I caught this little guys singing some of his favorite songs after dinner tonight. This includes Row, Row, Row Your Boat, with the version where you scream for the alligator, Little Red Caboose, Itsy Bitsy Spider, Twinkle Twinkle, If You're Happy and You Know It, and Happy Birthday.

interview with a 4 year old

I started interviewing Oliver on his third birthday, and hope to keep it up for as long as I can. Here are the questions and answers this year:

What’s your name: Oliver

What’s your last name: Villanueva

What color are your eyes: Black

Tell me the best thing about you: I'm 4

What did you dream about last night: Santa and his reindeer

Who is your best friend: Harvey

What is your favorite toy: garbage truck

What does Daddy always say: no response

What does Mommy always say: no response

What do you love to eat: mini hot dogs

What is in the sky: trees

Can you tell me a secret

Can you sing a song

Where do you live: Washington

Can you dance

How old is Mommy: 1

How old is Daddy: 3

Where does Daddy work: work

Where does Mommy work: teaching dogs

What is something that makes you happy: fire truck

Can you show me a sad face

What kind of car do you want to drive when you are older: fire truck

Who is your favorite superhero: Mallory

What do you want to be when you grow up: not sure

And you can watch last year's interview by clicking here.

pumpkin patch 2013

Our third annual trip to Bob's Corn Pumpkin Farm was quite a production this year. We have made it a tradition to go around Oliver's birthday, but this year in addition to Gramma joining us, we were accompanied by Bapa, Aunt Shannon, and her friend Olivia. The weather was gorgeous and the boys had a blast. We came home with over 20 pumpkins! I used many of them as an decorating activity for the kids at Oliver's party the next day and they all got to take one home as a party favor. We still have several small ones around our house and Oliver has spent the past several days decorating them with stickers. He is just wild about pumpkins as they remind him of his birthday month.

Riding the cow train:

To the pumpkin patch!

Pumpkin selection:

And a snack with Gramma before heading back:

Happy 4th Birthday!

Happy Birthday to my sweet Oliver! I can't believe you turned 4 today! I remember when our neighbors moved in across the street a few years ago and they had a four year old boy at the time, it sounded so old to me. You have turned into the most amazing, loving and caring little boy. You love chocolate, legos, trains, Chester the raccoon, and above all, anything that has to do with Christmas! We have been reading Christmas books for several months now and you are going to be Santa for Halloween. You love your little brother and Penny, and love to wrestle with Daddy. You are very independent, learning to read and write, among other things. Today you nursed for the last time. You really haven't been nursing much at all for six months now, but still ask for it every day. Today marks the end of a special four year bond that I shared with you, but you and I are both ready to move on. We can have a new bedtime routine of cuddling and talking. You have become quite a chatterbox lately, though you correct us and say you are a "sillybox". I love you Oliver! I am so happy to have you in my life.

how to wear a hat (uncle style)

Whenever my boys put on a hat with a bill in front, they always put it on sideways or backwards, because they say that is how Uncle wears his hats :) Here Elliott demonstrates how to put on an engineer hat properly. At one point Nick goes in to help but then realized Elliott didn't need any. And yes, his face is messy! He had just eaten blueberries, had a runny nose, and fell on his face a few days ago so he has some scabs from that.

there, he got it!

trains!

If there is one thing by boys love to do in the Bay Area, it's by far riding trains! They love the steam trains in Tilden Park and BART. I think we topped out at 6 rides on the steam trains and two on BART. I love how Oliver always wears his engineer outfit, no matter what kind of train he is on.

REDWOOD RAILWAY:

sitting on the engine after the ride

enjoying the view

engineers!

mommy and e

admiring the scenery

engineer in training

three cute kiddos

Gramma and her friends

BART:

in his engineer clothes again!

 

a smack for Uncle?

two peas in a pod

Uncle and his nephews!

preschool, week 2

A few pictures of the boys on our way out the door one morning last week. They are wearing matching outfits made by Gramma! Aren't they the cutest?

first day of preschool, 2013

My attempt at a few quick pictures before we headed out the door to their first week of preschool this morning. They were so excited! At co-op this year Oliver will go three days a week (with me in the classroom for one of those days) and Elliott goes one day per week (with me).

And now that the preschool has moved less than two blocks from our house, they love their new method of transportation :)