3 years old!!

 Bradley- 3 years old (2009)

Trent- 3 years old (May 2012)

Trent turned 3 a few months ago and it's always fun for me to see how he compares to his big brother. Obviously, they don't look much alike. And, Trent is built a little differently than Brad was at 3.

Here are the (not so different) pediatrician stats to compare:

Bradley 34 lbs./37 1/2 in. tall

Trent 33 lbs./38 in. tall

The check up went great and we are VERY thankful for a healthy, growing little boy! For the first 2 years, Trent used to hate going to the doctor and would cry for the entire visit, so it's been fun for me (and Dr. McCorkle) to actually be able to talk and hear each other. Trent is a precious boy who is extremely confident and sometimes a little cocky. He thinks he's tougher than he really is and absolutely does NOT think he's too small to handle or do anything. Just the other day, Nick was working on his lawn mower so Trent had to get his push mower out and push it around the yard with his ear muffs covering his ears (for the loud noise!). We love his strong will and desire to work and get dirty. We love his spunk and excitement. We love that he looks up to and copies his big brother. We love this boy so very much!



Our big boy is 6!!

Shaving and brushing teeth! Pretty good multi-tasking for a 5 year old!

Swimming with sharks in 2011

cute little 4 year old: 2010

precious little 3 year old

Asleep at the table (a RARE sight) 2008

2 year old cutie

1 1/2 year old big boy at the park

2007

sweet little baby- October 2006



2006



2012- Almost 6!

Our sweet boy is 6 and we couldn't be more proud of this precious child. Bradley is a very sweet, sensitive, loving, kind, silly little boy! He loves swimming, being silly, saying bowel-related words, playing video games, playing with Star Wars figurines or other super heroes and almost everything else little boys like to do. He's not crazy about being outside if it's hot and buggy-he prefers the a/c! Bradley is very caring and kind to his little brother, even though Trent can be quite a stinker! Sometimes Bradley has to 'gently' remind Trent that he can't aggravate his older brother unless he wants to be injured or tackled in some way. Bradley still really looks up to his sweet older sister and seeks her approval above anyone else's. Right now, he's very interested in Lego Star Wars, so he's having a Lego Star Wars birthday party at Gege and Papa's pool. We are so thankful for this precious child and for the 6 years that he has blessed our lives!

 Happy Birthday Bradley-boo!!! We love you so much!!

Sleeping Cutie

Trent is a little cutie...especially when he's sleeping! Trent is constantly torn between being a sweet baby who needs his mama to sit with him and drink juice with him and wanting to be big, tough and independent. (He puts this struggle on himself...we're fine with him being a baby a little longer.) He still takes naps some days because he is so tuckered out from the day's adventures. But, we're sometimes able to skip naps too, which is nice. He recently learned how to swim (almost) by himself and he goes underwater and swims to an adult. He is VERY proud of himself for doing this and now just about refuses to wear an innertube/swim ring at all, because he thinks that's for "babies". (I sometimes have to make him wear one so that he takes a break and so do I!) The other night, Trent said he didn't want to wear diapers at night-night anymore. He said he wanted to wear underwear like Bra-Bra. Not wanting to discourage him from trying this out, we let him do it. He proudly laid in his bed with his undies on and we told the boys "goodnight". After about 5 minutes, Trent came out of his room and told me, "I no wanna wear unnerwear no more." So, we put his nighttime diaper back on him and he fell asleep fairly quickly. We love our sweet little baby and are proud of him and all of his natural instincts about growing up!

No A/C? No problem!

July has been filled with unexpected expenses! One of which was our downstairs a/c going out during some extremely hot temps! Thankfully, our upstairs unit was running perfectly, so the kids and I slept on an air mattress for one night (Nick chose to sweat it out in our bed by himself). The kids thought it was an awesome adventure, but I was ready for the a/c to be repaired quickly! Our a/c ended up being fixed the next morning before lunch, so it wasn't really so horrible. Never before have I been more appreciative for the cool air of a working air conditioner!!

Rachel's Green Thumb

Rachel has a nice green thumb! She planted some flower seeds at the beginning of April just to see if she could make a small flower garden. We've all been pretty impressed with the blossoming results! Some of the seeds ended up washing away, but for the most part, all her choices were represented. She has been very diligent about watering her flowers and we've all admired their beauty! 

2012 Dad of the Year: Nick Milligan

 Nick and his babes

 the kid's favorite pool game

 Reach for the sky, Brad!

 look at my stud and my stinker

my beautiful sweet girl



Happy (late) Father's Day to my sweet husband, who is a fabulous dad to our kiddos! We tried to make his weekend special with a Father's Day breakfast, swimming and a little present. We are truly so thankful for Nick and what a loving, kind, wonderful father he is!! He has held the "Dad of the Year" Award since 2004! We love you, babe!!

PS- the "Dad of the Year" award was held by Gary Duke from 1977-2000, when I finally moved out! Love you so much, dad! You are such an awesome dad!!

Has anybody here...seen my old friend Trenty? Can you tell me where he's gone?

We thought we had lost Trenty the other day when Nick was cutting the back yard. It's not an area that gets cut very often, so it was pretty long. Of course, Trent thinks his jeep has the same capabilities as Nick's lawn mower, so he was right there with him, getting stuck in the very tall grass. He loves being outside helping Nick with whatever he wants to accomplish. If only we could get him a safe, child-sized lawn mower to ride on, our grass would never get so high!