Dirt Cake...Daddy Style!

Jared decided today he wanted to make Dirt Cake. Ok, I'm all on board, easy dessert and we're going to the grocery store so this will be a cinch! I start writing down ingredients, and he stops to tell me to make sure we make the kind with "white stuff" in it. I said, "Oh, I think you mean Oreos. The white stuff is from the Oreos you crush on top." Jared, "No, this is gooey white stuff." Me, "Jared, dirt doesn't have white gooey stuff in it. No dirt cake I've ever made has gooey white stuff in it." Jared, "Here, I'll find it." Then he proceeds to find some picture on the internet of what he's thinking of (I'm guessing he Googled "dirt cake with gooey white stuff")

By this point in the conversation I'm just ready to get to the store so I tell him that he can come with me and get the stuff he needs for his nasty-not-my-version-of-dirt cake! Well, at the store he starts asking me what ingredients we have at home, to which I reply, "I don't know. This is your cake. Guess you should have checked." SO, Chef Neufer made it out of the store with everything he needed.

Fast forward to this scene in the kitchen...

Jared is in the background searching through drawers looking for a measuring spoon. When he finds one, he turns to me and asks if it's a teaspoon or tablespoon. HA! This should be delicious! Max is meanwhile biting open a box of pudding. Oh, and go ahead and count the bowls on the counter! 6!

Checking his online recipe...

Lola gets in on the action. Max has successfully chewed open the box of pudding, but needed Daddy's help pouring the milk.

This was the BEST part of the day for me!! Jared whipping cream! I just died laughing when he realized this awesome recipe he found called for homemade whipped cream! Keep whisking!

You too Max! That pudding needs a little more action!

AND he did it!! I know his forearms were burning! This is the point where I tell him I probably would've just used the mixer to whip it up!

I had to intervene when he was trying to cream together the butter and cream cheese with a spatula, it was pitiful watching him work so hard! I showed him the mixer that's been in our kitchen for 2 years that he obviously thought was just for decoration!

The finished product! It was different, but delicious! I was very proud of the big boys and can't wait to see what they have planned for supper this week!

Dirty? Flirty? Nerdy? THIRTY!

Jared totally went overboard this year and planned a wonderful thirtieth birthday weekend for me! All I was told was to make arrangements for someone to keep the boys and to pack a bag. The first surprise was that he got off early on a Saturday! The next was the limo that picked us up - filled with some very special, and very sneaky, friends! We all headed to Hot Springs for the rest of the weekend and there were many more surprises in store!

Here's the awesome Italian Creme Cake from Ambrosia's in Hot Springs. They delivered it to the restaurant, but we were all too stuffed to eat it then so we took it with us. I think we ended up eating it at about 2:00 in the morning! And then again for breakfast!

We stayed at my BFs lake house, it was like a big bunking party, except for the fact that there were BOYS there! We even had all of our old yearbooks to look through! They were hilarious! We stayed up WAY too late talking and laughing, it brought back lots of great memories, and it was a much needed break from the "real world" of work and parenting. After a couple of hours of sleep, and a breakfast of fruit, eggs, cinnamon rolls, and more cake, we took a boat ride and soaked up the beautiful sunshine! Thank you all for making my THIRTIETH so special!

The Z-O-O

Max LOVES animals! He is fascinated by any book or movie that's about animals. Our bookshelves are packed with nonfiction because the little guy can't get enough! So, it's no surprise that one of his favorite places to go is the zoo. We try not to tell him when we plan to go until the very last minute because he gets beside himself with excitement! We can't even spell it anymore! He knows z-o-o is ZOO, so our "code" talk is totally useless!

Here we are with the elephants, Ellen and Mary. We were very sad to learn that Mary had passed away. Max has been pulling out this picture the last few days and saying, "Mary died. It's so sad." It's so dramatic the way he says it!

This was our first time to see the penguins. Max wasn't too thrilled about it...I think he might have been afraid he was going to have to get wet!

Daddy and Max rode the train while Mommy and Rush strolled around and looked at the chickens. I'll spare you the pictures of the chickens, but I became really interested in them lately. Could I raise boys and chickens? Couldn't be too difficult. Old McNeufer had a farm... Yardbird anyone?

I had to include this picture because the orangutan is currently Max's favorite animal, and he's helping me blog tonight, so here he is! Max could've easily stayed in the Great Apes section all day! It was a beautiful day, and I'm so thankful for times like these that we get to enjoy being together.

Man-to-Man

Jared and Max were outside playing one day, and when I looked out to check on things, this is what I saw...

My heart melted!

Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.

Deuteronomy 11:18-19

Saturday in the Park

I don't remember if it was really a Saturday, but we were definitely in the Park...Tyndall that is! We met our friends Drew & Bennett and Evie & Michael for a little picnic and play. Rush got some much needed sunshine and Max got to run and climb like a wildman! Oh- it's really difficult to try to keep kids and balls out of the creek at Tyndall Park- just FYI!

No boys-DOWN the slide! Why are kids so fascinated with going UP a slide?!

"I can do it by myself!"

Once, Twice, Three times a lady...

Well, maybe not so much a lady, but the third time is a charm!

This was my third shot at blogging and I've been clicking away all weekend. I've got thousands of pictures, just as many memories to go with them, and a stinking-sweet Macbook to record them on! SO...so far I've made it up to Christmas 2010, granted I skipped over almost two years of my life, but I thought this would be a good time to stop and share with friends and family.

Max is growing up so fast and I can feel memories slipping away-I've just got to have a way to record them! He really is one of the funniest, sweetest kids. I never knew I could like a preschooler so much! I mean, I love him, he's my child...but I also really like him! My Poppy always said, "I kind of like you", and I always knew that meant more than love. Well, I really like being around Max!

God blessed us with another sweet spirit, Rush, last October. I think I'm going to like him too! He just goes with the flow, and fits in perfectly with a fast and loud big brother. I have to remind myself that he is the baby brother, but cannot stay a baby forever! I realized this most recently when I tried to squeeze his melon-head into a 3 month onesie. He's already a mover and a shaker, and I can foresee purchasing a collar with bells on it when he's truly mobile...or maybe a zipline for the yard...

And then there's my third child, Jared. I use the term child only because I think that he will keep me forever young. I'm not sure how many people truly have fun in their marriage, but Jared makes sure that we do, everyday! He's impossible to be upset with, and truly has helped me put things into perspective. I'm so thankful that God lets me do life with him. So thankful that we get to spend this journey together!

So, here it is! The Neufer Family Blog! If I've posted a picture of you that you don't like, let me know and I'll delete it, or photoshop your double chin out of it. If you read something you don't like, keep your stinkin' opinions to yourself. I get enough of that spending all day with ten year olds, I don't need any more lip when I get home. Hopefully you'll see lots of things that you like, and get a tiny glimpse into our wonderful little world!

A Boy

Boy [boi] noun: a noise with dirt on it.

Neufer Boys

ANNNNNDDDD... photo shoot is over!

Christmas 2010

Santa begged me this year to let him get Max a power wheels jeep. Remember what I've said about Max being overly cautious? Well, jeep toys, tractors, four wheelers, and other fun, loud things fall into the same category as the hairdryer and vacuum. But I gave in and told him to go for it. I just made sure it was filled with lots of other safe, quiet toys, like trains, puzzles, animals, books, etc...

Here's Santa's setup. I know Santa can't help it. His sugar plum dreams were replaced with dreams of guns and ATVs as soon as he had his first son!

The living room was as far as Max wanted to go...but don't they look sweet?

We headed over to the Neufer's Christmas morning and Rush couldn't stay awake for the two minute car ride! After a busy morning there, we went for another round at lunch with the Ballard family.

Christmas Eve with Bebe. This child sleeps and eats. Well, that's pretty much what Max does too with some running thrown in between sleeping and eating! Both of our children were so laid back as babies! We just send out that vibe, right?!

I had a picture with Max's eyes open, and his pants on, but I thought this one was better of me, and I'm the one in charge of this blog, so here it is!

Merry Christmas!

Santa the Stranger

OK, let me start off by saying this; I was a very cautious child and a lot of everyday things scared me. The hairdryer and vacuum cleaner to name a few. Max is overly cautious of the exact same things. I'm sure this will be nice when he turns 16 and gets behind the wheel, but until then, it can put a cramp on Mommy's picture "wish" list. For example, all I really wanted this night was for my three year old and newborn to sit in an old, white-bearded, sleigh-driving stranger's lap. Is this too much to ask? Yes. This picture is what I got when I agreed to let Max stand by Santa instead of sit in his lap.

My instructions were, "Go stand by Santa next to the tree." This is how he responded.

Not even a smile? Fat chance!

However, after about 30 minutes or so he warmed up, decided to step up to the plate, and not let this jolly old elf nab his baby brother.

Happy Halloween 2010

This is the spider costume I made for Max this year.

I refused to buy a costume, and he refused to wear it.

I did manage to get a couple of shots of it. (He trick-or-treated in his sweatsuit) Figures!

Baby Brother slept most of his first Halloween, even through Mr. Spider's yelling that he wasn't wearing his costume!

And our sweet family! BOO!

Rush Emerson Neufer

Well, Max lived up to his name- coming in at 9 pounds 10 ounces. I should have know what naming a child "Rush" could possibly bring! Rush was scheduled to come on October 19 by c-section, that was a Tuesday. I'd planned to go to work that Monday, but decided at the last minute to stay home. I also decided to take Max to the babysitter for a couple of hours to have some time to get things ready. That was at 8:00 am. At 8:20 my water broke. I was so confused. I was scheduled for a repeat c-section the next day!! Today was my day off! I started panicking thinking of all the "what ifs". What if I had gone to school? What if I hadn't taken Max to the sitter? What if I had this baby at home?! I wasn't even sure who to call, so I called Jared. Then the doctor. Then my parents. They both came rushing over, like there was anything they could do, I guessed catch the baby because by 10 minutes later I was having some serious contractions, even though I was convincing myself they weren't really contractions because I was SCHEDULED for a c-section! Jared made it home and we went flying to Little Rock. When we got to Labor and Delivery, the nurse asked how far apart my contractions were, I told her I didn't know, I was supposed to have a c-section! Well, the reality was they were about 5 minutes apart and coming strong! They called my doctor, who thought she wrote the date down wrong, and we got things moving!

This was me telling Jared to take a picture. I thought I was gracefully smiling through a contraction...didn't really turn out how I pictured it in my head!

Max made it just in time! So did the grandparents and Uncle Jordan. Everyone was in a tizzy!

Our little family about to change forever! Can you tell how excited Max was?!

I LOVE this shot of Rush's little hand!

SO, in the end, the surgery went well and Rush came about an hour after arriving at the hospital. My doctor told me afterwards that his "rushing" to arrive a day early was a blessing because I had had a placental abruption. Thank you God that everything works according to Your plan, not Brooke Neufer's!

Proud Big Brother Max

Rush Emerson Neufer

October 18, 2010

8 pounds 11 ounces, 20 1/2 inches

Daddy pretending he knew how to put the baby in the car. Mommy took a picture, then got the job done herself!

Ready to go home! It was a beautiful day, and we were all ready to get home and begin life as a family of four! Look at that face!

Baby Bump (or Baby Mountain-as in Everest, not Pinnacle)

I just had to post a couple of pics of my giant belly. This one was taken about a week before the big day. I was SO swollen!

I laugh every time I see this picture...These are two of my friends, and co-workers. Rachel, on the left was due a week after me, and Morgan, in the middle, about six weeks after. I remember thinking this day that I didn't look much bigger than Morgan. Then, when I looked at the photo I just about flipped! Not much bigger, huh Brooke? Really? I had pregnancy induced body dismorphic disorder or something! I think mostly it's because I just kept thinking, "Surely I can't get any bigger..." Well, I did!

Max's 3rd Birthday

Max turned three years old on October 4, 2o10. We had his Razorback party that weekend, and everyone came dressed in their Arkansas finest. Mommy was very pregnant and very forgetful. I am ashamed of the cake because I always make everything for my parties. It was tasty, but clearly not homemade, and clearly not Razorback! My teenage cousin took care of decorating it, and consequently, Max thought she made it! Oh- and I didn't hear any complaints! I hate that I didn't get a picture of the rest of the spread, OR the cake before it was hacked into!

Daddy and Pop got the new swingset put together just in time for all of our friends!

Our family of three! One of the last photos of the three of us! I had Rush two weeks later!