Snowed In!

We may not have had a white Christmas, but there certainly is no shortage of snow now! The Parkers are snowed in! We had a blizzard this weekend and this is what we woke up to this morning. We couldn't even open the back door! The snow was almost as tall as I am, and even though I am a shorty, this was A LOT of snow!

Daddy P started digging us out after the snow stopped falling, but the wind was treacherous!

Ryan and Evan wanted to watch Daddy. Pretty soon they'll want to go out to help. Well maybe not to help, but they'll want to go outside! Why oh why does my boy love to climb! **sigh**

The snow had not started Sunday morning, so the boys and I headed to church. Ev was ready for the coming storm.

Ryan was too! The snow started during service, and by the time church was over it was really snowing! Good thing Daddy drove us home, because mommy + snow = FAIL!

I am a southern belle! I know nothing about driving in the snow!

Even earlier Sunday morning the Peas were relaxing while I cooked their breakfast. I am soooo glad we bought these chairs!

We made it home safely and were officially in the middle of a blizzard at this point! Ryan didn't let that stop him from playing.

Ryan and Evan adore their new backpacks! Ryan loves to carry things around, so I thought a backpack would be something he'd like. Of course, Evan had to have one too, and they both love them. I have to admit getting a little teary eyed seeing them wear these backpacks. I started thinking about them going to school and realized that they are growing up way way too fast!

Tonight we spent a lot of time in the playroom. Ry and Ev still had presents that we hadn't opened yet, so we opened them tonight. Evan really wanted me to open the drum set church mommy Laverne bought them.

We now have a total of three drum sets in our house! HELP!

We are still snowed in and we don't mind it just one bit. We have food in the fridge and we are enjoying this time together. It is refreshing not to have to be somewhere. I've been able to get laundry done and have another day of laundry ahead of me tomorrow. But other than that, I just plan on enjoying my three fellas!

More Christmas Photos

I can honestly say that we had the absolute best Christmas ever. It was such a joy sitting back and watching our children enjoy themselves. Daddy P and I agreed that even though going back home would have been nice, being at home with just the four us was good too. We spent the entire day watching Ryan and Evan play, and they certainly didn't disappoint! They usually take two naps, and on Christmas they didn't have ONE! Well, we did go for a ride and they fell asleep for a few minutes in the car, but as soon as we got home they were wide awake and ready to play some more!

They are loving these cell phones! They sound just like real phones. I recorded a message for each of them so when they open it they hear me asking to speak to them.

Evan seems to be saying, "I'm pretty sure you are not supposed to be sitting on that thing, Ryan!" I hate to say it, but Ryan actually did fall off and got a pretty nasty bump. My poor baby looked like he had been in a fight with Mike Tyson. :( He cried but quickly recovered and wanted to climb some more! I called the doctor and found out what we should be on the look out for. He slept with me for two nights so I could be near him and I had to wake him after two then four hours to see if he would respond. He wasn't a fan of being interrupted from sleeping, though! He was completely fine, thank God and the knot was gone the next day.

If you notice, Evan has this drum stick in his hand in almost every picture! Here he's using it as a phone! The Peas both started showing an interest in drumming things, so you know we had to find our babies a drum set! The Parum Pum Pum drum set from B. Toys comes with a ton of other instruments! It's like a Parker brother's band around here now!

We all love the Learning Home!
Evan still has his drum stick!

"I Did It!"

WARNING: This video contains extreme cuteness. Watching it will cause your heart to melt.

As you can see, the fun continued into the evening! The Learning Home was a major hit with Ryan and Evan. They play with this toy all the time. I wish i could count how many times we've turned that light on and off. Now everytime Ryan does something he yells, "I did it!" Love, love, love our boys!

Christmas Morning

Ryan and Evan weren't sure what was happening! They didn't know what to do first:)

Christmas Eve 2010

Christmas eve was busier than we expected! There were last minute errands to run and visits to make. We even hosted an impromptu Christmas eve dinner. We were blessed to spend the evening with our dear friends and their adorable three children. Ryan and Evan must have known that there was something in the air because they stayed up until 11pm! Actually they both fell asleep before 9 and them woke up and stayed awake until 11. There was still so much to do that night, and the Peas certainly changed our schedule!

Finally they fell asleep and Daddy P and I could get started setting up their gifts. One of the best memories I have of Christmas with my mommy is waking up on Christmas morning to find unwrapped gifts under the tree. I don't remember having wrapped boxes at all, though I'm sure we got clothes and things. All I remember is coming downstairs to find all those toys on Christmas morning! This is something I was excited to pass on to Ryan and Evan. It took a lot longer than I thought to get the everything ready. (Dear toy companies: must you put soooo many thick plastic ties on your merchandise?!) Daddy P had a few things to assemble and my job was to open all the packages and set things up. I was giddy with excitement just thinking about Ryan and Evan waking up to all their goodies. Here's their loot:

It was massive! I didn't even unwrap the gifts that were given to them by family and friends. These were the things their dad and I got for them. By the way, my new favorite toy company is B.Toys. They have the neatest toys ever! There's a section for B. Toys in the specialty toy department at Target.

Finally it was time for bed! Our two munchkins slept until 8am, which is late for them! We couldn't wait for the big reveal!

Church Family

Have I ever mentioned how much we love our church family? The people of Union Baptist Church have been such a blessing to our family. The day before Ryan and Evan were born and I was admitted to the hospital people came to see me in droves. When I was transferred to Yale they were there. When the boys were born I don't think there was a moment when somebody from our church (and churches around the nation--literally) were not praying for us. They sent flowers and visited. I pretty much lived in New Haven the summer the boys were born and one family drove up on a regular basis--to New Haven--in rush hour traffic--to bring me a home cooked meal. The condo I stayed in that was walking distance to the hospital? Courtesy of a friend of a church member. They threw us a surprise baby shower that was out of this world! I still have things from our shower that I haven't used yet--18 months later! The biggest surprise was my grandmother, sister, and Cousin Betty were all in attendance. I'm telling you, they thought of everything.

One day, I was at the hospital and I was at my breaking point. I'm talking, I'm about to lose it, admit me to the psych ward right now breaking point! I went to the chapel to pray and my phone rang. Something told me to answer it and it was our pastor. How in the world did he know that I needed a word of encouragement right then at that very moment?

Their love and kindness have only continued since the boys have been home with us. This time last year the director of the children's choir brought the kids to sing Christmas carols to the boys through the window, since they knew we couldn't come outside and they couldn't come in. When we didn't bring the kids to church for months they didn't push and respected what we had to do, even though I'm sure they couldn't wait to see them.

We go to church every Sunday now, and their support starts as soon as I pull into the parking lot. The deacons save me a parking space, get the stroller out the truck, help strap the boys in, and insist on pushing them inside. If it's raining or is too cold, they let me pull to the front and get the boys out. They even park my car for me. Once we get inside, the church mommies step in.


Miss Ina is Ryan's church mommy, even though she loves her some Evan too! She brings yummy snacks that she knows they'll love and has the perfect spot for them when they need to run around.

Miss Laverne is Evan's church mommy, but I know Ryan has a special place in her heart too. Laverne is quick to go with me to the cry room when the boys need a break. She'll grab the diaper bag to change a diaper before I even realize they're wet.

Without these two, I don't think I would be able to come out to worship. On second thought...not true. There are many more mommies-in-waiting that I'm sure would come to my rescue at a moment's notice.

By the way, Ryan hates to take pictures now. Would you look at him?!

This one was taken immediately after Laverne put him down, though! Crocodile tears??

Even the kids get involved with the after service fun! When the boys were still in the hospital someone said to us that one day our babies would be running around Union in no time. Guess what happens every Sunday after church? God is awesome and I'm not talking about what I heard. I'm telling you what I know.


I know there are many church members who read our blog and I want you to know that we love and appreciate you. We are so very grateful to each and every one of you. Thank you for loving us and for loving Ryan and Evan.

Ball Players?

Did you know that Daddy P was a big-time football star when he was in high school? (I'm officially dead for posting this!) I wonder how he's gonna feel when he sees these videos of the Peas. Maybe they'll be basketball players!