The Daniels' Boys Top 4 Must-Haves

If you live in the Daniels' home, there are a few things that you must have:

1) Legos



Big C received tons of Legos for his birthday and Christmas this year. Since then, he has fallen in love! And....whatever Big C plays with, Little H thinks he has to play with too. Hudson loves to dump out the Lego box, but these toys sure do hurt when they are met with a bare foot!

2) Costumes/Dress-up



We love to play dress-up at our house. Clayton has collected tons of costumes over the past few years, and now Hudson is beginning a little collection of his own. From Superman, to Batman, Ironman, Firemen, Doctors, Construction Workers, Army men, dinosaurs, and lions. Our boys love to pretend!

3) Action Figures and Transformers



I'm going to blame this small addiction on Will! Will loves action figures (Batman, Superman, Hulk) and loves Superhero cartoons (Justice League, Avengers) So......what Daddy watches, the little boys watch. Clayton loves superheros and Hudson is following in big brother's footsteps. "I want Spiderman!"

4) Games of all kinds!



Thanks to Aunt Shannie and Uncle Mark, who donated their Wii to our family at Christmas, Clayton does loves Mario. But he loves traditional board games, Candy Land, Hungry Hungry Hippos, and Checkers. New games that we play too often, include Sponge Bob UNO, Flippin Frogs, Go Fish.

Baby Toy of the week:
5) Sophie the Giraffe



Sophie makes a great chew toy for Graydon! My sister was obsessed with the movie, Three Men and a Baby when she was little, and yes, this is the same giraffe that Tom Selleck buys for the baby at the newspaper stand in that movie. When we came across this toy, it was a must have!



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and..........thanks to my friend, Ashley, and her yummy Japanese white sauce and fried rice recipes (www.thecowanscorner.blogspot.com) , we had a fabulous Kyoto-style dinner!!!!

"Venom" the Snowman

Yesterday, we celebrated Snow Day #10! I love snow days with my boys! Clayton woke up that morning and began asking me to go outside and help him build a snowman. Now, Clayton knows, I love snow days, and I love to watch the snow: but, I hate the cold and I don't really like to play in the snow. My snow playing, includes, running outside in pajamas and boots for a few minutes to snap a few good pictures! So, we waited all morning and afternoon for Will to get home. Will's instructions - "Have the boys dressed and ready for the snow by the time I get home." - I could do that! And, just like that, I had three boys building their first snowman.

Clayton rolling snow for our masterpiece.



Hudson did more running, than building.



We finished our snowman off with button eyes, a carrot nose, sticks for arms, and a scarf. Clayton has named him "Venom" - I guess that's what you get, when you let a 6-year old little boy name the family snowman. Somehow, he just doesn't look like a scary Venom to me, but oh well.......

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

Gray sits up on his own at 7.5 months - This was my post for today, until my sister captured this hilarious shot of Gray and Ad this afternoon!



..........and I just couldn't resist to show this off too! I promise we were watching them! Just wait, Gray, until she can defend herself.......

When the Cats are away, Two Little Mice will play!

Last night, Will and I were downstairs, finishing up the night's household chores (laundry and dishes). Big C and Little H had headed upstairs to play together. (Santa brought Hudson a slide for Christmas and the big boys love it!) Will and I heard loud thuds coming from upstairs and through the ceiling. Boom! Thud! Two elephants upstairs jumping, running, and playing! I quickly grabbed for my camera and tiptoed up the stairs to catch the boys in action and to snap evidence of two rowdy boys!

I was able to catch this.........



and this...........



and Hudson jumping on my new recliner!............



Clayton was quick to see the flash, but I did capture this shot, as he was hiding behind the chair!



Oh my! What will I ever do when there are "Three Wild Little Mice!?"

A Chef in the Making

At our house, we love chocolate chip cookies! My mom has made homemade chocolate chip cookies since I can remember. The boys love them, Will loves them, and I love them! I probably should make them more, but I just can never find the time. Yesterday afternoon, I thought a batch sounded pretty yummy. Little H and Baby G were asleep, so Big C wanted to help. He does love to help out in the kitchen. He does pretty well stirring ingredients, but his favorite thing is to "break the eggs!" Yesterday, he attempted to use the mixer, and surprisingly did very well!






What a great big, boy! Clayton is becoming quite the "little helper."



Two boys loving cookies for breakfast!

What Color is this?

Little H is definitely our care-free, fun-loving child. To get him to sit down and do anything is a miracle! So, the other night, when Hudson sat down in the floor with Will, I immediately ran to get my phone. Will had grabbed a book nearby and began quizzing Hudson. "What color is this?" "What color is this?" I knew Huds knew most of his colors, but when he didn't miss a single one, I was so estatic!

Watch this adorable video below:

Friday's Fab 5!

I am trying something new - each week I am going to post 5 fabulous things. I am going to include 4 of my favorite things and 1 fabulous baby trinket or toy. Here to my first list of Friday's Fab 5!



1) My Bible! I made a New Year's commitment (better than a resolution) that I would be in the Word every day. So far, so good! As our children's minister at church (not so gently, reminded moms) - "How can you teach your children something you know nothing about?" Good point and taken to heart. I do want to teach my children in the ways of the Lord, and I am going to be more intentional in recording my prayers and studying my Bible. Plus.....this Bible is super cute and easy to tote around! I love it!



2) My IPhone! I know it's terrible, but I love this phone. I do have the white Otter Box, so the boys can play a few of the games on my phone and toss it around. With this fancy box, the boys can't damage the phone. I am addicted to Words with Friends (scrabble) and facebook. I am trying to also be more intentional about not having my phone glued to me. I am trying to spend more time with the boys, technology free! (another reminder from Cindy, our children's minister)



3) Slugs and Bugs CD - My boys love this CD. Two weeks ago, at Family Worship, the Slugs and Bugs song was introduced and Big C instantly fell in love! We now have this CD playing every time we get in the van. In February, Andrew Peterson (songwriter and artist) will be coming to our church in concert and our family can't wait!


4) Cupcake Caddy - For those of you who know me well, you know, that I love making cupcakes! I love making them for Big C's kindergarten class. It really doesn't matter what kind - mummies, monsters, Frankensteins, christmas trees, whatever. This great cupcake caddy allows me to make 24 perfect cupcakes, in an easy to carry tote for Big C. You bake, decorate, place in the caddy, fasten them in, and carry to school! Perfect!

One of my favorite baby trinkets:

5) The Winkel - I have to give my sister credit, she did tell me about this fabulous toy! One afternoon, shopping in town, I happened upon "the Winkel". Graydon loves it! It's made of plastic and makes a great chew/teething toy. Its bright colors are attractive and it's super cute!



That's it guys! Here's to 5 fabulous, fantastic things on Friday!