Let it snow?

As a teacher we always love a good night of snow. Well be careful what you wish for. We now have over 2 feet of snow here at our house. We have already used two of our three snow days and my snow shovel has gotten a big workout. Camey loves the snow and has been out helping dear ol dad with snow removal. Mom bought Camey a sled that is pulled by guess who and we have been running circles again and again around the yard.

Ry guy is just about one. We have 10 days to go until the big event. He is such a big guy, who has two teeth now. He is also about to take his first official steps without assistance. we have two to three steps without assistance, but are still looking for the first across the room travel. He is such a loving and joy filled guy. We cant wait for you all to spend a little time with him this Christmas season.

Emily has been her usual busy self. The house has never looked better, and she is constantly taking the kids here and there for story time. Her home business has also taken off. She has opened some eyes within the company and if you have any friends who would like to order, point them her way. We are proud of mommy and always amazed at what she can do in a 24 hour day!!

My team is off t a 3-0 start and have played very well. I try to get home as much as possible between practices and games to see the kids. They are my pride and joy. We all look forward to the upcoming holiday season. Hope all is well with all our friends and family!

To McCamey From Daddy on your 2nd birthday

I can't believe how fast two years have gone by. I have watched in amazement as you have continued to discover and grow. You and your brother are my pride and joy!!! As you turn two, I wanted to share the things that I have watched you learn and accomplish this past year.

First is your love of any / all animals. You absolutely love the zoo and all the animals there. Especially the giraffe's. I can't begin to explain the joy that you bring to mommy and daddy when you are calling out to the animals or recalling what you remember seeing that day. My personal favorite is "horses!" after being with grandma.

Next is your love of your family. You are the sweetest little girl I have ever known. You loe your little Ry - guy and especially your nana's and papa's. We are also starting to work really hard to remember your "unc's" and aunts and cousins.

I have enjoyed watching you grow into the beautiful girl who is definitely daddy's little girl. My favorite part is when we cuddle up on the couch at night. You rub my ears while we sit close and get ready for bed. I will never grow tired of my favorite phrase, "Dadda....Hold...pweese!"

McCamey, you have changed my life and I could not be more proud of you. I am your father and I love you with all that I have. I will always be there for you and try my best to protect you. To watch you grow and learn day by day brings a smile to my face. I try to embrace these moments as best I can. I know that there will come a time when the hugs and kisses will not be as frequent so I will take all the "lips" that I can get now. i will hug you and hold you every chance I get. I will soak up every time that I walk into that door after work and you squeal with delight running up to me to be held. Your mommy and I want you to know how special you are and how wonderful you make us feel. You bring a smile to my face each and every day. I know that over time you will continue to grow and mature and discover new things. We will be with you every step of the way. We love you so much and I hope that you will always know that.

McCamey Rose Compan I just want to wish you a happy birthday and tell you how much I love you!!!
Love Daddy

Back in business

Ok so we took a little break from the blog. But we are back at least to give everyone an update. Since our last time blogging much has happened. We have decided that Em would stay home with the kids next year. So in a few weeks when I am back in business, Em will be at home with the kids instead of burining out grandma's or daycare. It will be a great year for Em and I know the kids will love it too. The school has also said that she can go back to her 4th grade position.

McCamey is becomming such a big girl now. She has an everexpanding vocabulary. Cam is really starting to put together two and three word phrases. Her favorite is "sit down peese" Just to get anyone to be beside her. She loves to go "side" (outside) and play with her toys.

Rylan has hit a milestone. He is sitting up on his own now and starting to reach out to crawl. It wont be long now. He is such a joy for us. Especially when we look back to where he was. Ry is a happy guy with a quick smile. Grandma bought him a car and he loves to sit in that car and be pushed around. He is also catching his big sis in weight. He is only 3 lbs less than cam and I believe will pass her up soon.

As far as I go, business as usual. Golf practice has started so I am basically back in school now. We should have two very successful seasons this year. I am looking forward to hopefully winning two league titles again this year. My family is growing and I feel like a lucky s.o.b. God has blessed us and we are thankful for all of you!! Camey's birthday is coming up soon, so we will see most of you shortly. And Jen, Thanksgiving is not that far away!!!

Pictures from Florida

Spring Break at Grandpa's Condo!!!

We had the pleasure of enjoying spring break again this year in Bonita Springs in FLA. We made the trip down with Grandpa von Philp, who was a huge help for us. We could have never made it through the airport without him, or made it through the flights without him, or even had been able to go without him... so thanks a bunch Grandpa!!

The trip down was very uneventful. The kids both did great on the flights, and neither flight was crowded, so McCamey was able to parade around the plane a little. She thought it was neat when the plane took off and was excited to be taller than the trees. Once we got there, everything was great. The weather was 85 and sunny each day. We played by the pool every day and tried to make it out fr a dinner each night.

Our trip was also filled with many visitors. The first few days we had Grandma and Grandpa Compan stop by on their way home from their cruise. The kids were very excited to see them and enjoyed time in the pool with grandma. Grandpa and Grandpa played lots of golf and I joined them the first morning for 18 holes. After they went home we enjoyed time with Em's frien Debbie. She was in a neighboring town with friends and joined us for a dinner and drinks. The last day we were there Emily's friend Ashley from the wedding came up from Miani to visit and do dinner with us. All in all it was a quick but enjoyablw time.

McCamey loves the pool at the condo. We spent all our time either in the pool or walking around it. There wass so much to see. Golfers, birds, lizards. Camey was full of ooohs and aaahs. Plus there were lots of planes flying overhead to keep her occupied. She is becomming such a big girl, right in front of our eyes. Rylan was too young to put on sunscreen, so either Emily or myself spen time with him in the shade. He did a great job of chilling out and he is looking forward to his next trip down, hopefully in the summer.

All in all it was a great trip, filled with great relaxing and family time. We had been looking forweard to it fr so long, it was kind of sad how quickly it went by. But fear not, we can go down any time we want, and we hope to keep Grandpa von Philp very busy playing with him at the condo!!!

A little kneedy!!!

Seeing as how I am as close to dad as anyone...that is appearence (maybe tiff has the edge there), physique, proximity and golf game. It is only natural that I follow that same path physically. I underwent a scope procedure on my knee last wednesday..Happy St. Patty's Day!!! I spent the rest of the week with my leg up recovering slowly. I feel a ton better and I highly recomend that Tim follow the same path. It's not terribly bad. I go back tomorrow (Tues) to get the stitches out and learn what my plan for rehab will be.

We also got some good news on McCamey this past week. She went to see the hip specialist who has now cleared her of any worries. She told us to let her grow up and be a kid. So that is what we are doing. She has no return appointment.

Camey also has gotten into a new phase of not listening, we have actually started to spank her a little. The first time that daddy swatted her butt she looked at her mom and smiled and said "ooohhhh" and off she went laughing. Not a very good sign for dear ol dad. We have started to swat a little harder and hopefully have a little more effect.

Rylan has been improving as well. He now will give us good nights of sleep and we are not getting up 3 or 4 times. Usually only 2 times a night. His coloc is much better and is a happy baby now cooing and smiling a lot during the day, He still seems to prefer mom or dad. Which is just fine with us. We are looking forward to the Florida trip and having our little babies down in the sun!!!

Emily has decided to stay home for the rest of the school year. It was a very tough decision for many reasons especially because she absolutely loved her group this year. But this will get us to 9 months with Rylan and almost 2 years with Camey before next school year. We stay very busy and are keeping both grandmas schedule filled with babysitting and little field trips to get out of the house. Emily looks great and is feeling great and is also eagerly anticipating the sun and fun in Florida.

A whole lot going on!

It has been a crazy couple of weeks for the Compan clan. A couple weeks ago we took the whole clan to Kalahari for some indoor fun, and the whole lot of us came down with something... stuffy, sneezy throw up etc. Camers did have a blast when there however... usually running away from her dad without ever stopping to look back.

Em's 29th birthday was also one to remember for us. We had her brother Adam over that day with his new girlfriend and his daughter Zoe. We went out to get pizza and wings for the party. It seems that Em and I were the only ones to partake in the wings. Lucky us, for the next 8 hrs or so we took turns on the toilet, while we both lay in the fetal position on the bathroom floor. We called mom that night around 11:00 begging her to come and help, and off to the hospital we went for 4 hours to get rehydrated from our battle with food poisoning. Happy Birthday Em!!

The kids have been great. Rylan is slowly coming out of his colicky stage, he is much more pleasant and coos for us all the time. His big sister loves him, kissing him on the head and cheek whenever we let her. Ry already weighs 12.6 lbs. He will catch Camey before too long. He had a good 2 month checkup. We are going to Florida soon with Tom. We are looking forward to that. McCamey loves nature (Geese) and the wiggles. She is a dancing fool when her favorite show is on.

My basketball team lost their first tournament game, on the night of Em's birthday. I sat at home while dad text me the scores. We finished 17-4, which is a good year, but should have been better. Maybe next year...

We are looking forward to spring break and some time off to relax, it has been very hectic around here. Hope to see you all soon

Our new little guy and our new world

Well it's been 6 + weeks since the birth of our new liitle man, and it has been nothing short of total chaos ever since. We did not do the best planning on the time for Rylan's birth..right smack in the middle of the basketball season. We have going at breakneck pace ever since December, nothing has slowed down. Rylan has been growing quickly and is such a strong little guy. Recently he ahs been having great difficulty feeding and sleeping. After numerous sleepless night and trips to various doctors, we found out today that he is colic, with a severe case of acid reflux, which the Dr. said is a lethal combination... "NO SLEEP!" We have upped his medcation and are looking for any suggestions for colic or just suggestions in general.

McCamey loves her little brother and gives him plenty of hugs and kisses. She has also developed a love for the gym (much to her fayher's delight). She comes with me t practices and loves to bounce the ball. The girls love having her there, because crazy coach becomes calm coach. We are doing well this season. Currently we are 15-2 and ranked 12th in the state in our division. Another strong season, but long season.

Things are great however. We love our little man and think that things will calm down soon enough. We are truly blessed with 2 wonderful kids who are blessed with great grandparents and aunts, uncles and cousins. We look forward to seeing everyone soon and we send our best wishes to you all!