Project Update #1

About a month ago I wrote a posting that detailed all of the projects we were going to be working on with the various parental units. The purpose of the list was to give us a starting point for getting the house prepared for Jack and Finn's arrival. I also wanted to get as much done with the extra help, because once the boys arrived I was going to have less time to complete home improvement projects. We are still finishing up a number of projects, but we have made some real progress.


In the front we really don't have anything in the way of landscaping. We are now well on our way to getting something that looks pretty decent. We were pretty careful in our selection of plants because between the location of the site and my black thumb, nothing has survived there yet, except this horrid ground cover.

We also took out a couple of shrubs from the front, still working on what is going to go in these spots.

We, and by we I mean "Sir Chops-a-lot" aka Papa Baker, trimmed the bushes down to a manageable height. Now that the bushes are trimmed, the two new Live Oaks planned in honor of the Jack and Finn will have some sunlight to grow.


We also got the gate fixed and it now opens and shuts with ease.


We were also able to install some gutters on the north side of the house and this allows the water to flow away from the house instead of under it.


And the patio is on the way to awesome. As you can see from the photo, we extended the surface out. This will allow the boys plenty of space to ride bikes, and we will also have more space for a patio set. Currently, Papa Wehr and I are working on improving the grilling area (more photos to come soon).

Where has my little boy gone?

Since bring home Jack and Finn from the hospital, I have come to a very sad realization. Our little boy, Sawyer, isn't so little. I know that he is still less then 2 years old, but he has definitely moved into a new phase of his life. After just a week he has gotten much heavier to pick up (without actually adding any weight), his skin isn't as soft as I remember it being, and he is so much more assertive when he doesn't get what he wants. He also understands so much more and still finds ways to remind us of this fact. We are now fully into the spelling things out phase of parenthood, because mentioning certain words can incite a full on tantrum (i.e. juice, chip, trains, trucks). He is still our little boy, but I can now see that he isn't always going to be little. I am sure this is something every parent experiences, but it has just hit home much harder since we have introduced Jack and Finn.

Sawyer: Day One


Sawyer: On his way to two years old.


Jack and Finn (don't they look like somebody else----see above)

Last Night before

Well this blog post was in draft form from Wednesday night, and I was planning to attach a picture and then send it out. (Jack and Finn had other plans and here we are now in the hospital sending out old blog posts)

In just under 12 hours we are going to be adding two additional members to Familia Baker. We are very excited to finally meet these two little bundles of joy. I am also confident Sarah is more than ready to have this whole pregnancy thing done and over with. We have been blessed by God to have such a low key pregnancy. I am exceedingly proud of her, she has worked really hard to do everything possible to carry these twins to term…and as of last week she accomplished this goal. On top of that, she has worked right up until this week and therefore is going to be able to stay home with the twins until after Spring Break. When we went in for our first appointment with the “at-risk” nurse, the nurse indicated that by about 32 weeks Sarah would be so uncomfortable that she would be relegated to bed rest until the twins arrived. Sarah didn’t like being told that and, in my opinion, set out to prove the nurse wrong. She did. She worked full weeks just like she always did.

We are also lucky to have family and friends who have been around the last couple of weeks and through December helping us prepare for the impending arrival. We have been able to finish the nesting required to welcome the twins (tomorrow they will have names-can’t wait to stop calling them “The Twins”). The nursery and the rest of the house is ready. We have been blessed to have such generous friends who are willing to share much of that baby stuff people normally have to buy. Nothing matches in the house, but hey, we didn’t have to pay for nearly anything. Special thanks to Stef, for organizing the “Care Network” (Calendar ID: 28504 Security Code: 2777), this is going to be such a huge help in the next couple of months.

Here is the last picture of how pregnant Sarah really was…..enjoy.

Be sure to follow the updates tomorrow on Twitter and Facebook. We appreciate all of the well wishes and prayers.

Christmas Wishlist 2.0 – Santa Goes Online
I figure by this point Santa has been able to, at the very least, get dial up, and therefore should be able to read the blog to know what I am wanting for Christmas. I know that it is a little late to get the elves working on some of these things but that is why Santa is so awesome.

I will list a couple of the items and reasons for wanting them, and if you need additional ideas, I have also made a wishlist on Amazon to make things easier.

1. Audi Q7 Diesel –we can barely get 3 seats in the back of the Pilot, and certainly not in the back of my Accord. This seems like a perfect alternative. Quality German engineering, not a minivan, and fuel efficient to boot. What is not to love……except the price tag, which is why I would like Santa to bring me this for Christmas.


2. Mi Adidas – this is a website where you can “build” your own customizable shoes – I have always wanted to do this, but just never have taken the time to do it. More information at www.adidas.com

3. Bose Headphones – as hard as this may be to believe, Sarah and I don’t always agree on what we want to watch on the TV……Thank goodness for HULU – the only problem is we don’t have a quality pair of headphones so as to not disturb the other person. These would also come in handy on roadtrips because there is a good chance that at some point there will be 3 kids screaming in the back seat, and the ability to cancel out that noise and focus on driving would be invaluable. This is for the good of all mankind.

4. Books – I like the feeling of holding a book in my hand so I am not quite ready to switch to the Kindle just yet. I also like the way a house looks when it is full of books, just not the same to have your Kindle taking up shelf space. The list of books that I am currently interested in reading is listed on my Amazon wishlist.


5. Chucks - I would like a pair of black low-top Chuck Taylor All-stars - I wear size 11 in Chucks



6. Sometimes Santa doesn’t like to be restricted with a singular list of items so I also feel the need to provide him with a couple of websites where pretty must anything received would be AWESOME.

a. Bumpy Pitch – vintage soccer shirts
b. Nau – environmentally thoughtful clothing
c. Decoder Ring Designs – custom screen prints, usually concert posters
d. US Soccer or Fulham FC - soccer stuff is always great

School Baby Showers

Last week Sarah and I received a wonderful baby shower from the staff at BBE (Bluebonnet Elementary), and then this week the staff at CCE (Canyon Creek Elementary) hosted a shower for Sarah and the babies.

Sarah and I both feel very lucky to be working at such wonderful schools. We are both blessed to have such dedicated and hardworking group of people who are always looking to put kids first.

Here are a couple of picture for the shower at Bluebonnet. If we get any from the Canyon Creek shower I will post them.


Sawyer was a big fan of the punch, and also of all of the books....he took a whole bunch off the shelves before finding something he liked.

Handyman Jobs for the Holiday's

Two weeks from now we are going to have parents and friends coming and staying with us until New Years. Everybody is hoping they are going to be around when the babies arrive, but just in case those babies decide to stick it out in their current quarters for a little longer, we have another plan. We have made a list of all of the little (and not so little) jobs that we would like to work on while everybody is here. As the jobs get completed we will provide a status update on the blog as well as accompanying photos.

1. Breakfast Nook: As many of you will recall I built a breakfast nook over the summer. And as many of you will also recall, I said that I am not so hot at the details of finishing a project. Here is what needs to happen with the nook in order for it to be complete (rework the benches so they open and close easier, painting, sealing)

2. The door going out into the garage isn't hanging correctly, and it is getting progressively worse by the day, so we need to rehang the hinges and possibly readjust the lock set.


3. Move the gate latch down about 2 inches so that it opens and closes easier, also install something to make it easier to open from inside the yard, without having to reach over the gate.

4. Patio Addition - this is the big dream project that would really get Grandpa Jack's juices flowing. Since we are going to be adding a couple of additional bodies in the house, we (okay, I) feel it is important to have a little additional space outside to live.




5. Bed planting/planning - my dad has a degree in botany and a love of plants, and so I will be turning to him on this one. We have a bed out front that I tried to grow tomatoes in this summer, but despite my best efforts and large amounts of water, the 68 days over 100 degrees acted as a worth adversary and killed my every effort.


6. Nursery completion: now that I have finished painting the nursery all we are waiting on is the cribs (which are coming from my sister's twins), and various other furniture and baby stuff to be loaded and organized in the room. I think this is a job well suited for the female persuasion.

7. Picture Hanging: If there is one thing that Sarah and I can consistently disagree about it is how, where, and at what angle to hang pictures. This is a task where Sarah needs other women to provide advice, and then just agree with Sarah. The only involvement men should have in this process involves nails and hammers.

8. Garage - reorganizing the garage is always needed.

Halloween Fun

This Halloween is the first time that Sawyer actually had an understanding of what he was suppose to do. He caught on faster then I expected, after the first house Sawyer knew exactly what he needed to do and was jumping out of the wagon and running up to the house with Cousin Amelia.

Sawyer went as a train engineer (much like his old man at that age), however he didn't really like wearing any of the engineer things so he just looked like a kid in striped overalls.

Sawyer helping before the party.


The finished product.


This is the trail mix type thing that Sarah was making, but it was so sticky and we didn't have parchment paper, and this is what happens.


Sawyer's Trick or Treating buddy was Cousin Amelia, she did a great job being a guide and they had an absolute blast.






Sawyer in the candy mobile.


Glow sticks were a big hit.

Soccer Mistress

Most Sunday's, I head off for a couple of hours to burn off a little accumulated rage. I have been with Havoc FC for a number of years. Last year we finally had a team's worth of players over the age of 30, and moved out of the open division and into the "BenGay and ankle braces league" also know as Over 30. I took a couple of shots at the game yesterday.




We are the team in black.


This is the look of a team that is losing in a bad way.


That is how you pull a hip flexor in the Over 30



Just another beautiful day to kick around.

Another Busy Weekend

Sarah's parents were in town for the weekend. We had a great visit and are sorry to see them go home, but they will be back soon enough, once the twins are born.


Sawyer helped Grandpa Wehr put together his new grocery cart.


"Actually Grandpa, I think it goes like this."


The finished product...oh what fun.


Shopping for kids clothes....I can't think of anything more fun....oh, wait, I can.


Sarah and her mom debating the importance of getting the correct shirt. Which is more important - trucks or hammers - oh what the hell, lets just get both.


I figured I would take this opportunity to get the picture for our upcoming Christmas card, thank goodness all of the department stores have had their Christmas stuff up since July 5th.

Sawyer and Friends

This is what happens when you let me dress Sawyer. I honestly thought that the outfit looked good, but I was quickly corrected.



Sawyer went out for some Mexican food with his good friend Lilly. They were kind enough to bring their parents along. The funny thing is that even at this age they know each other by name. When we ask Sawyer if he wants to go see Lilly he always says "Yaaa" and sometimes will try and and say Lilly which sounds more like LLLLLLLaaaaAA




"Look over there"




Going in for the sweetness


"MMMMMMM, I don't know about all this kissing"


Just a couple of troublemakers looking for something to get into.


Pretty Girl


I like this shot of Lilly.


Boys and their trucks


The new cigarette inspired Oreo cookie treat.