Jonah Zane Herzog

From ME to WE!

2011-08-27T20:15:00.006-04:00

Check out our new family blog at http://herzogboys.blogspot.com!

I'm Flying!

2011-08-06T22:04:00.002-04:00

Nana got us cool suitcases to take on our trip out West and let me tell you, I loved pulling mine!
Me and my bros checking out our ride!
My entertainment for 99% of the flight...video game baby!

40 at 40

2011-08-06T21:45:00.002-04:00

Our friends from Hong Kong, Dennis and Shelley (who now live in NC), had a birthday party and we got to go! Mom and Dad's friend John (who worked with them in Hong Kong) also flew in and stayed with us for a day before we made the 3 hour drive.
I was very excited to play with Naomi and Janaya!
Ezekiel and I hung out with the girls the entire party!

Gearing up for Ma and Pa's house

2011-08-06T21:41:00.002-04:00

Ma and Pa sent us a care package right before our trip out to see them! Ma knows we LOVE books and since she just retired from teaching she has lots of books to send us! I can't get enough of chapter books these days. I'm not satisfied unless we read the whole book, preferably all at once! I can't wait to go on an airplane to see Ma and Pa!

Smoky Mountains

2011-08-06T19:19:00.007-04:00

We went on a vacation with Nana to the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee and had a blast! Dad even got to come with us because school is out for the summer!
We spent one day hiking up to Clingmans Dome which is the highest point in Tennesee. Ezekiel and I spent more time complaining...it was a steep hike! Mom and dad brought the stroller for Micah but Z and I took turns riding in it while Micah got to ride in the pouch.

Our resort had mini golf that we got to play every day!

Ezekiel and I had lots of fun dueling in our swim gear!
One day we went to an amusement park and got to ride trains, planes and all kinds of stuff! We even got to ride the go-carts! I rode with Mom and Ezekiel rode with Dad.

The place we stayed at also had a spray park that I loved!
But my all time favorite past time is swimming! On our last day we got to choose where to go and I chose the pool with Dad while everyone else went to Parrot Mountain.
We loved cartoons and treats!
Another night we went hunting for lightening bugs! Mom read about some syncronized lightening bugs in Tennessee and after finally locating the place at 10:00pm we found out that we had missed the show by a week or two. We still had fun catching them at this visitor center and it was a real adventure staying up so late!
We celebrated the 4th of July on our vacation too. It was pretty uneventful, we didn't hear or see a single firework but we did wear our flag shirts!
We played lots of games...
...and ate lots of ice cream!
I can get used to this vacation stuff!

Father's Day!

2011-08-06T19:10:00.003-04:00

I know I'm really behind on my posts so it's catch up time! Here are my pictures from Father's day! We made Daddy breakfast in bed and after church we went to Cracker Barrel with Papa.

Trophy Day!

2011-06-22T20:33:00.004-04:00

My T-ball season has come to an end. Not sure if I loved it but I definitely improved throughout the season! We thought T-ball meant just that "T" ball. Not the case. In our league we get 3 overhand pitches from the coach then if we don't hit it we get the T. With lots of perseverance and practice I improved a lot and I loved to hit it off the pitch. Dad says the next thing we get to work on is "running fast". I may have lallygagged my way to first bast when I hit it... I didn't have a real sense of urgency so I decided to save my energy!
At the end of the season was Trophy day where we had a base running competition and then the presentation of the trophies. Here I am on deck to run the bases.
Waiting for our turn to get trophies...
I'm next!
Booyah Baby!
The next day we had our team party at the Asheville Tourist game. Dad and I went (and he forgot the camera)...
I got the Most Improved Batter award and Ezekiel got a Junior Brave award!

Blueberry Hill

2011-06-22T20:26:00.002-04:00

We call this place Blueberry Hill because it reminds us of the book Blueberries for Sal. Unfortunately the blueberries won't be ripe until later in August but we had a fun hike and even got to go swimming! Mom and dad brought our swimsuits but left them in the car thinking that we'd just wade in with our crocs...WRONG!
So we stripped to our skimmies and had a blast! Luckily we were the only ones there too!
We love summer adventures!

Park and Play!

2011-06-09T11:18:00.002-04:00

Parks are always fun and this one is one of our favorites! Micah even got to go down the slide and I think he liked it!
Ezekiel and I had a blast climbing up this contraption. We're so tall!

Best. Vacation. Ever!

2011-06-09T10:52:00.005-04:00

That's what I said every day I was here! Us boys and Mom had a spur-of-the-moment vacation to Myrtle Beach! Nana and Pop were going and since I was out of school already we decided to tag along! Poor daddy was left behind for another week of work. But we didn't let that stop us from having fun!
The weather was gorgeous and the beach was warm! Growing up on the west coast, this was a treat for mom!
Ezekiel and I had a blast laying in the water and jumping the waves.
Mom took each of us out really far to jump the big waves and that was so much fun!

Back at our condo the tub was just about as much fun as the beach! We loved to turn the jets on and swim around.

One evening we went to a place where we fed turtles and shopped around. We got to ride the carousel and look at ourselves in a funny mirror.

We loved hanging out with our great grandpa! He's the best!

I loved the beach but I think the swimming pool was my favorite! Our place had a lazy river to float down and a great pool that was only 3 feet deep that was perfect for me!

Of course no trip is complete without matching shirts! Thanks Nana!

Summer time!

2011-06-09T10:39:00.004-04:00

Mom says it's summer time but technically it's still spring. Either way I'm excited to stay home and play with my brothers! We have lots of fun adventures planned including a spur-of-the-moment beach trip, a vacation in the mountains and a trip out west! We've also got some day trips planned and lots of bike riding and pool swimming! Hopefully I can keep up with all this blogging!

Last day of Preschool!

2011-06-09T10:22:00.004-04:00

We got to have a play day at the park the day before the last day of school. It was lots of fun and my brothers even got to come!
Maria's brother brought this cool ride on machine that we all took turns riding!
And our teachers got us buckets filled with all kinds of goodies! I loved preschool and can't wait for kindergarten to start!
After my last day of school we all went out for ice-cream to celebrate!
Let the summer fun begin!

T-ball baby!

2011-06-02T21:51:00.002-04:00

Now that T-ball season is almost over I'm really enjoying it! I can now hit off the pitch and I love it! We get 3 pitches from our coach and if we don't hit it then we get to hit off the T. Mom captured me in action and says that she might sign me up for golf next...she says I'm a natural...

I may have a bit of confusion over home plate. You see, when I'm on third base, everyone is yelling to "Run home!" and 9 times out of 10 I tend to veer off into the dugout...mom caught that on film too!

Mother's Day

2011-05-15T14:04:00.007-04:00

Look what I made Mom at school! It's a handprint flower with chores I'll do for her...if she has the heart to tear them off that is! Ha!

Mother's day started with bringing mom breakfast in bed! Dad helped us make pancakes that spelled M-O-M and a heart! Of course Ezekiel and I climbed in bed with her and helped her eat them! Ezekiel got the heart, I got the O, mom chose the M and we all shared the last M. Then we all got ready to go to church, which is rare because Micah is usually napping by the time we need to leave so Mom and Dad take turns staying home with him.
Of course a special day is not complete without pictures!

It was beautiful outside so I got to ride my new bike!
And Nana, Pop and Rob came over for dinner! Happy Mother's day!

Easter Day

2011-05-12T14:54:00.006-04:00

Happy Easter everyone! Our computer had some technical difficulties before I had a chance to post these so I'm doing some catching up! Here we are playing with all the egss we found!
Easter morning was a little rushed with checking out our baskets and getting ready for church!
And of course posing for some pictures...
After church we went to the Biltmore House egg hunt but we forgot our baskets so we had to improvise and use what we had in the car! Luckily we found a couple bags that worked. The egg hunt left a bit to be desired but we got to see a magic show before that was kind of cool.
In a total of 5 minutes we gathered eggs, turned them in and got our goodie bags. As mom and dad would say, "weak sauce".
But the fun didn't stop there! Mom's birthday was on Easter this year so we got to have a party for her too!
There are 2 videos that I wanted to include but they are not uploading so I'll just tell you about them. The first is a video of Ezekiel and I finding eggs outside our bedroom door that led all the way down to the front door where we found our Easter baskets and even one for Micah! The second video is me singing "Up From the Grave He Arose" and it's pretty good if I do say so myself. Maybe I can get it to work later.
I almost forgot the egg dyeing part! Always a favorite activity!

Egg Hunt!

2011-04-29T14:36:00.004-04:00

This was our first Easter egg hunt of the year! Mom made us pose for pictures before it started... And poor Micah was napping so he didn't get to come this year but he'll be big enough next year, maybe!
This year we started with a parade around the park with the Easter bunny.

Strategizing...
And we're off!
Afterwards we got some pictures with the Easter bunny himself...only guess what? He was really just a man. I saw his arms.
He was still cool so we gave him lots of hugs and high-fives!
We even got balloons at the end of the hunt and posed with the Easter bunny one last time.
Happy Easter!

T-ball

2011-04-26T14:28:00.004-04:00

Check out my first T-ball game! I'm on the Braves team and I'm lucky #13! This is me right before game time when we first got our uniforms.
And here I am playing center field. My game was a little boring so I decided to see what was going on in the next field over.
Scooping up a grounder! Check out that form! This is just practice before the game started, I didn't get any balls hit to me during the actual game.
Pre-game pep talk!
My favorite part of T-ball so far is the cheer! "Go Braves!"
Workin' it at bat! I'm a lefty. We get 3 pitches from the coach and if we don't hit it we can hit it off the T. I got a single every time!
I only made it to 3rd base every inning because we always had a 10 run limit before I could make it home.
Celebrating after the win! (27-6)
After game huddle and cheer! I'm still trying to figure out the ins and outs of this game and I'm not sure I love it. I already asked mom and dad not to sign me up next year. For our second game I hit the ball from the pitch and that was really cool so maybe I'll end up liking it, who knows. Right now I'm having fun making new friends and saying cheers!

Zoo trip!

2011-04-17T12:47:00.002-04:00

I'm always up for a zoo trip! I wanted to push Micah's stroller and show him all the cool animals!

The best part of the zoo might have been the cool playground! I loved this climbing thing!

Baby brother

2011-04-06T15:25:00.003-04:00

I love waking up from my nap and finding my baby brother to play with. He's getting so big!

8 months later and I still want to give him kisses all the time!

Maewyn Succat

2011-03-17T21:16:00.004-04:00

Happy St. Patrick's day! Our traditional "green" dinner (inspired by my grandma) was yummy!
My personal favorite was the kiwi fruit and the lime jello!
After dinner and our showers, we switched into our Bulldog shirts (Gonzaga is playing tonight!) and watched the St.Patrick's day Veggie Tales movie. Then mom surprised us with a rainbow cake! I wanted it all red but I ate it anyway.
We even got gold coins...that turned out to be chocolate!

Dog Pile!

2011-03-16T14:48:00.002-04:00

Happy Birthday Dad and Dr.Suess!

2011-03-03T14:04:00.003-05:00

For Daddy's birthday we had green eggs and ham because it is also Dr.Suess' birthday. Before school Ezekiel and I made dad some birthday cards, then Nana came over for our special dinner, cake and presents! Dad got a whirly-pop and I can't wait to try it out! I love popcorn!

Spiderman!

2011-02-27T18:59:00.002-05:00

Mom bought this costume on clearance after Halloween last year. I'm making sure it gets worn out!
I thought Mikey would be afraid of me but he wasn't!
He's checking out my blue eyes under that mask!

Valentine's day!

2011-02-16T20:50:00.007-05:00

Here I am getting ready for my first Valentine's party at school. I got to write all my friends names on cards.

The night before Valentine's day Ezekiel and I rounded up all of our valentine books (there were more than Mama thought) and we read them all before bed!

And here are a few pictures from my class party. Yummy snacks, and we made our own Valentine bags to keep all of our goodies in. I even got to use glitter!

Dad, Ezekiel and I got Mama some roses and Mama got us some little mailboxes with goodies inside (forgot to take pictures). I like this holiday!

Nana and Friends!

2011-02-13T10:53:00.004-05:00

On Friday it was my Nana's birthday and we suprised her by bringing her a bouquet of tulips before school started. Then she came over to play with us and have dinner.
We also had some friends of mom and dad from Hong Kong over. I was so excited to play with Naomi, Janaya and Micah!
We took them to the Biltmore House in the morning and boy was it cold!

After lunch we came back to our house and played played played! Ezekiel and I even got to skip our naps!
We had so much fun! Naomi came up with the best games! It was sad to see them go but they just live 3 hours away so we'll get to see them again!

Groundhog Day!

2011-02-02T21:23:00.003-05:00

Today we celebrated groundhog day and we even got to wear our pajamas to school! I've been looking forward to this day for 2 weeks now and every day I've been asking mom how many more days, and telling her I can't wait that long!
We got to bring a sleeping bag, pillow, flashlight and a sleeping buddy (I brought my beloved ladybug pillow and blue baby!).

For recess instead of going out in our slippers we had games in the hallway.
Ezekiel even got to play with us!
We had crafts.
We played with shadows.
And read books! What a fun day!

Chinese food!

2011-01-31T20:37:00.002-05:00

I almost forgot one of the best things about my birthday...Chinese food! I got to pick where I wanted to eat and of course, hands down, it was Asiana Chinese buffet! I love that stuff! My favorites are the orange chicken, "sesame street" chicken and noodles! Oh and lemonade to drink!

5 years old!

2011-01-14T19:48:00.010-05:00

For my 5th birthday I ordered up ribs for dinner! Dad was more than happy to head out into the snow to BBQ for me!
Enjoying my scrumptious dinner with Nana!
Time for presents! This was the year of puzzles for me.

I love the battery operated Thomas toothbrush...not so sure about the girly toothpaste! In mom's defense it was "bubble gum" flavored and that is my favorite, just not digging the princess' on the tube!
My favorite books ever! Magic School Bus!
Another "Jonah" book to add to my collection.
Favorite present this year: my ladybug pillow pet!
Thanks Uncle Scotty Bumps and Auntie Sarah!
And thanks Rebecca for my yummy red velvet cake!
Doesn't baby Micah look cute in his party hat?

Snow much fun!

2011-01-11T21:04:00.004-05:00

This has turned into quite a winter! Here are some pictures of me, Ezekiel and Pa sledding on what's left of our Christmas snow.

Christmas with Ma and Pa

2011-01-11T20:52:00.003-05:00

Christmas with Ma and Pa was fun even though they were a day later than expected. We got a foot of snow so their flight was cancelled. But once they got here it was nonstop playing!
We had to help Micah open his gifts...and play with them too!

My very own camera from Ma and Pa!
A boy can never have too many hot wheels!
We love going to restaurants with Ma and Pa too!
It was a short trip but they are coming back to visit soon!

Mom's favorite gift!

2011-01-01T16:01:00.001-05:00

One of her favorite gifts is missing in this picture (must have been napping...)!

Merry Christmas!

2011-01-01T15:50:00.003-05:00

Here are a few pictures from Christmas morning.

As soon as we got done opening presents it started snowing! Thank goodness Nana and Pop stayed the night with us because we got a foot of snow and were snowed in for 2 days!

Camping under the tree!

2011-01-01T15:37:00.002-05:00

A few weeks ago my mom had a meeting at my school and my teacher talked about the importance of meaningful holiday traditions. Here's one we especially love! Mom and Micah weren't up for it this year but us big boys had a blast!

Christmas Eve Eve

2011-01-01T15:09:00.004-05:00

On Christmas Eve eve, we got new jammies and Papa came over in the morning to celebrate with us.

Then on Christmas Eve we got more new jammies! They might have fit Ezekiel a bit better than me but mom couldn't resist buying them when she found the same ones in Micah's size!

Christmas Traditions

2010-12-29T19:10:00.003-05:00

Besides getting dressed up in matching outfits, another Christmas tradition is going to the Grove Park Inn with our friends Kathryn and Luke. Each year there is a big Gingerbread House contest and we go check them out (...and run around like crazy children).
I love my little brother! He's so kissable!

Happy Birthday Jesus!

2010-12-24T16:24:00.004-05:00

In my classroom we got to have a Birthday party for Jesus! We had yummy snacks, a baby Jesus cake, balloons, a book exchange, crafts and presents from my teacher! Mom, Ezekiel and Micah got to come too! What a fun day!

Muffins for Mom

2010-12-20T21:16:00.004-05:00

At school we are studying the letter "M". On Friday we had "Muffins for Mom" day! I love it when my mom comes to school with me! Ezekiel and I both had 4 muffins before mom cut us off. Then we got to play for a little while and show our moms all the cool stuff in our classroom.

Snow day!

2010-12-20T21:08:00.002-05:00

I've had 4 snow days so far this year and one late start day. Daddy and I both get to stay home from school and play on snow days!

2010-12-06T08:47:00.004-05:00

On Friday I had my first Christmas play! I was one of the Wisemen who came to see Jesus and brought Him gifts. I was super excited about it and a bit nervous too! When I got up on stage I looked all over for Mama but it was hard because we were in the spotlight. Once I found her I waved and then I was able to concentrate on my show. Here are a few pictures and even a video of the big day!

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-11-30T14:25:00.005-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! We hosted the big day at our house since Micah takes so many naps it was easier that way. Unfortunately we forgot to take pictures of the big event. Nana, Pop, Rob, Con, and Nana's friend Rebecca and her husband, Mark came. I really liked Mark. He gave me undivided attention almost the entire evening and I couldn't have been happier! Ezekiel, on the other hand, was a bit intimidated by the big crowd and refused to come downstairs the entire night! He missed out cause it was lots of fun and the big feast was yummy! Connie ate with me at the little table since Ezekiel didn't come down.
Nana played with us for a little while before she started cooking.
And she brought us a beautiful center piece that she won at her work.
Here's Nana's friend, Rebecca, holding Micah and my buddy Mark in the background.

And here's our party of 5 gearing up for the big day!

Fall

2010-11-28T09:25:00.017-05:00

If I had my way I'd skip Fall and head right into Winter! I'm ready for some snow! But in the meantime I did have fun jumping in leaves.
I got my school pictures back and I look mighty handsome if I do say so myself! I wanted to wear a shirt and tie so I could be just like Daddy.

.

All the boys in the house hanging out on Z's bed
We celebrated Papa's birthday this month too...Z and I decorated the cake!
Then Ezekiel had a birthday yesterday and we spent all morning at Fun Depot!

We had a party for him after naps, ate pizza and cake and opened up presents!
This is how sad I was because Ezekiel got all the presents...that's not entirely true, Nana and Ma/Pa and even Mama got me a little something to open but I didn't get as many as him hence the sad pitiful face.

Duck, duck, GOOSE!

2010-11-17T14:52:00.004-05:00

Goose EGG that is! I got a whopper! The other morning I was hiding from Ezekiel on my bed and nailed my head against my headboard. These pictures show a little of the progression of my bruise but don't quite do it justice.

Happy Halloween!

2010-11-02T19:50:00.007-04:00

I wanted to be a lion again for Halloween and luckily my costume still fit! This year we went to my Nana's church for some "Trunk-or-Treating"! First we had a hot dog dinner, yum! Then a cake walk! Ezekiel and I won a chocolate cake. Then we decorated treat bags and played tons of fun games to win prizes. Nana was in charge of the bean bag toss so I helped her part of the time. Then we went to the parking lot for trunk or treating. It was just like going door to door only trunk to trunk! My favorite treats are the tootsie rolls this year!

Pumpkin Patch (round 2)

2010-11-02T19:31:00.005-04:00

Ma and Pa got us these cool Halloween shirts so before heading to our final pumpkin patch mom required a photo shoot.
We love our little brother!
Now this is skill people!

Papa came over and took us to a really fun pumpkin patch, one we had never been to before, but you can bet we'll be back! They had cow rides, a corn box, corn mazes and even a horse and buggy ride! What a fun day!

Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-29T14:34:00.002-04:00

We barely made it to a pumpkin patch this year! Micah doesn't like car rides so we didn't want to make lots of trips (at least mom and dad didn't). And today I wasn't feeling all that well so it wasn't the best day ever but it was still pretty fun. We each got to pick out an apple and have it peeled and sliced. I thought it looked like a pineapple! We didn't get to do the corn maze because it had already closed but I'm pretty sure I would have begged mom or dad to carry me because I was tired before we even got there. We did get to ride "Bessie" pulled by a tractor and that was a blast! Here are a few pictures of our day.

John Deere

2010-10-17T21:59:00.002-04:00

I sure have come a long way from the big city of Hong Kong! Now I'm riding a John Deere! Our neighbor's son has a tractor and today he gave me a ride. Ezekiel refused to get on but not me, I had a blast!

Blue-eyed boys

2010-10-08T20:10:00.002-04:00

I love my little brother! I miss him so much while I'm at school and am so glad to see him when he and Mama and Ezekiel pick me up. I like to hold his hand in the car and make him smile. And at home I am very attentive to his needs. I also think it's really cool that he looks like me!

Fair Fun!

2010-09-19T10:34:00.005-04:00

Every year Papa takes us to the fair and I love it! Good rides, good food, good fun!

My favorite thing this year was the jumping thingamabob. I was so brave, doing 3 backward flips!

Nothing like fair food: ice cream and a corn dog! Does it get better than that?

I was pretty tired by the time we got to the barn but I was fascinated by a cow peeing and I got some chocolate milk from one of the brown cows!
What a fun day, thanks Papa!

School activities

2010-09-18T16:46:00.006-04:00

Last week we had a picture day at my school. Mom said I could choose between a polo shirt and a shirt/tie. I went with the tie because I wanted to dress just like Dad! Here I am posing before going to school.

We also had a "cowboy" day at school because we learned all about the letter "C". I dressed up in my most cowboyish clothes and I even rode in on a horse!

When I get home from school I love to hold our new baby Micah! I miss him when I'm not home.

Back yard camping!

2010-09-03T20:58:00.003-04:00

So dad thought we would kick off our Labor day weekend with a little back yard camping! Ezekiel and I have been begging to go but mom wasn't so thrilled about the idea. But she gave us boys the go ahead while she stayed in with Micah.
Everything started off great! First we actually found the tent which was a small miracle since I'm not sure it has ever been used...we even found our air mattress, again never been used. Then we helped dad set it up. Well, we tried to hold it up at least while dad drove in the stakes. You can ask him how well we did... Then it started raining! Note that it hasn't rained here in ages! What were the chances?
Then we got in and played and played! Mom didn't even make us take a shower tonight (but she said we had to in the morning).
Dad played Go Fish with us, read us books and told us tales. And mom even brought us some popcorn and goldfish to snack on.
We lasted until about 9:00pm, then mom heard Ezekiel crying even though she was inside the house and he wanted to go in. So I followed suit. Maybe we can try again sometime! Or maybe tents are better just to be played in during the day!

Greenville Zoo

2010-08-28T22:03:00.003-04:00

Today we went to the zoo! It was a small zoo but still lots of fun!

Mama can I kiss him?

2010-08-23T20:24:00.004-04:00

"Mama can I kiss the new baby?" "Mama can I kiss Micah Jude?" "Mama can I kiss him?" This is all that mom hears when I get home from school. I also tell her that I'm glad we brought him home from the hospital and I want her to "born some more babies" for us to have! She tells me she's too old but I reassure her she's not!

First day of preschool!

2010-08-18T13:56:00.005-04:00

Today was my first day of school! I've been waiting so long to finally "go to work" with Daddy! Contrary to what I thought, I'm apparently not a teacher, but a student. Either way, I had tons of fun today!

Daddy and me on my first day!

This is my super nice principal, Mrs. Bolvi.

Here I am putting all of my supplies in my cubby.

This is where I hang my bag.

And my snack goes here! After hugs and kisses for mom and dad I told them they could go now and I started playing with the cars and dinosaurs in my classroom. I'm gonna love school!

Our new baby is here!

2010-08-11T21:34:00.007-04:00

And I couldn't be happier! I want to hold him and kiss him all the time! Micah Jude was born on July 23 at 4:45am. He was a hefty little guy weighing one ounce more than I did! (9 pounds, 1 ounce, 19 3/4 inches long...although this is debatable since 3 days later he measured 21 3/4 inches...and a 14 1/2 inch head circumference!) Of course he has his own blog: http://micahjude.blogspot.com Check it out!
Nurse Mollie even let me help give him his first bath!
Then she showed us how to swaddle him.
Micah liked his bath okay...
...but once he started to cry, Ezekiel bolted...
...but I stayed to comfort him and hold his hand.
And here is mom, dad, Nana and 3 boys!

Summer fun!

2010-08-01T10:57:00.009-04:00

This summer has been the best ever! Ma and Pa got to be here for a whole month! That meant I got to get up early and play with Pa! We went on adventures every day too! Lots of morning hikes, movies, playing outside and even a trip to Tweetsie! This first picture is me swimming in a lake at Mommy and Daddy's friend's house.
Trying my hand at fishing...
creek walking...
going for a canoe ride...
golfing at Fun Depot...
riding rides...
racing Z on motorcycles...
mini carousel...
hiking to blueberry hill...
didn't find many berries but we did find a cool waterfall...

jumping at the mall...

riding in the "fun cart" at the grocery store...
pool time at home...
more hikes...
butterfly exhibit at the Nature Center...
celebrating Ma's birthday with a lava cake...
I love you Ma!

helping Pa build at Lowes...
family movie night...
hanging out with friends at the Arboretum...
getting Jack Frost ice cream even in the rain...
celebrating my half birthday with half a cake...
being silly at Tweetsie...

I had so much fun this summer and didn't want Ma and Pa to leave. We even got a new baby while they were here, those pictures are coming soon!

Mom's belly

2010-07-11T14:48:00.004-04:00

Our new baby will be here soon!

Summer Lovin!

2010-07-09T07:57:00.004-04:00

So far I've had a super fun summer! Ma and Pa got here almost 2 weeks ago and we've been having all kinds of fun! There are lots more pictures to come!

First time seeing lightning bugs!
I caught some in my jar!
New spray park downtown.
Posing with someone...
Making cookies with Ma!
Building a monster truck with Pa!
Fun at the Nature Center!
A new friend!
Playing baseball with Pa!
Finding "goldbug" with Pop.
Pop's sister Kathy and her husband Jim came to visit.

Summertime!

2010-07-05T14:15:00.004-04:00

Summer time is here and I'm having a blast! We go out for adventures every day and daddy comes too! He doesn't have to go back to work for a long time! Here are some pictures of me at the Biltmore House...(they have a petting zoo too) and at a park where we can go creek walking!

Happy Father's Day!

2010-06-21T17:14:00.002-04:00

I have the best Daddy in the whole wide world! We were too rushed getting ready for church to make him breakfast in bed but we did help him open all his gifts in bed. Then mom made all the boys get our picture taken...Ezekiel still has a few things to learn about smiling! Not me though, I can ham it up for the camera anytime! I love you Daddy!

Cousins

2010-06-16T14:43:00.002-04:00

Last week we met our cousins in Atlanta for a mini vacation! I got to meet Tyler for the first time and boy did I love that little guy! I wanted to hold him every chance I could. We had lots of fun, going to the aquarium, swimming, coca-cola museum (although that one was not my favorite), riding the subway and playing in the water park. Mom, dad, Ezekiel and I also got to sleep in the same bed together! We may have been off of our routine for a few days but it was so much fun! It was great to see Unlce Scotty bumps (although I can't find him in a single picture), Auntie Sarah, Sydney and Ty Ty. I just wish we could see them more often!

A day out with Thomas!

2010-06-15T20:54:00.003-04:00

I got to spend the day with Thomas the Train! We couldn't have asked for a more perfect day. It was overcast so it wasn't miserably hot and surprisingly it wasn't even that crowded. I loved everything about this day and mom took so many pictures I had to narrow them down to a few of my favorites.

Summer time!

2010-06-09T12:13:00.002-04:00

We love going to the waterpark! And now that the weather is hot we can go there more often! The only bad part is most afternoons we get thunderstorms so we have to plan our fun for the mornings. I was a little apprehensive about the water since I didn't have my goggles but after Ezekiel ran right in I had to too!

Preschool Playdate!

2010-05-25T14:12:00.004-04:00

I got to go to my new school today and meet my teachers and see my classroom! It wasn't technically my "first day of school" but I let mom take my picture anyway. It was a bit too sunny but I did the best I could. In my classroom I played with legos, cars and a sand table! I also had some snacks. I think I'm gonna like this school thing! I also picked out my own clothes this morning and dressed myself. If you can't tell, red is my favorite color these days!

Mother's day

2010-05-20T14:30:00.004-04:00

At church I made this pretty picture for Mama to treasure forever! She was so happy!

We spent the rest of the day playing at Nana's house!

Spring flowers

2010-04-29T12:27:00.002-04:00

The Biltmore House is so pretty this time of year! Mom wanted to take some more pictures with all of the flowers.

Tulips in bloom

2010-04-29T12:16:00.000-04:00

Hot Air Balloon!

2010-04-29T12:10:00.003-04:00

Last week we went to visit our friends, Snow and Theo, and we got a big surprise! A ride in a hot air balloon! It came to their Daddy's school and we were just going to watch it but then they asked if we wanted to ride it! It was so much fun! Even "blue baby" got to come!

Growing a Garden

2010-04-29T12:01:00.002-04:00

It's garden time! Nana got us our very own garden tools so now we can really help Dad! So far we've planted peas, cauliflower and rasberries, yum! We'll wait another couple weeks to do the rest, just in case we have another frost. I'm a really good helper this year! Zeke...not so much. I like to dig the holes and Zeke likes to fill them back in!

Tennessee Zoo!

2010-04-23T14:52:00.003-04:00

On our way home from vacation we stopped by the Tennessee zoo! We got in free thanks to the Nature Center pass Ma and Pa got us! We had to rent a double stroller though, but that's okay, it was well worth it. The animals are always fun to see but this zoo had a playground and a little science center that we got to play in. Best of all: ice cream for the ride home!

Spring Break!

2010-04-23T14:35:00.005-04:00

For Spring break we went with our friends to Tennessee! It was a long slow drive but we made it and had a blast. We spent most mornings at the park, then the swimming pool.

There was also a lake with a fun beach where we got to play in the sand all afternoon.

It was chilly on our last day there but we still got to go outside and feed the fish. We were looking for ducks but the two we found weren't hungry so the fish got our bread!
Our room had it's very own swimming pool that we had lots of fun bathing in each night. Dad had to get in to scrub us!

Happy Birthday Pa!

2010-04-17T19:08:00.006-04:00

Today is Pa's birthday and no birthday is complete without cake and party hats so we had a little party for Pa even though he couldn't be here!

And here are two big ol' kisses just for you Pa! We love you and can't wait to see you this summer!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Happy Easter!

2010-04-12T21:13:00.002-04:00

What a great Easter we had! First we found Easter baskets on our front porch! Then after eating a few goodies we went to church. After that we headed to the Biltmore House to check out the festivities there, but we were too late for the egg hunt and the bunnies looked a little scary to us so we opted for no pictures this time! And although we were tired and cranky, an ice cream cone cheered us up for a while! After a quick nap in the car we went to Nana and Pop's house for more fun! We found more Easter baskets (thanks Ma, Pa and Helen!), had more egg hunts and a feast to top off the day! Rob and Con even got us a little gift that we got to open! My favorite part was the egg hunts! After I found the ones that Nana hid, I hid some for her to find! What a fun, fun day!

Easter Egg Hunt!

2010-04-11T14:00:00.004-04:00

On Saturday before Easter we went to Papa's house for an Easter egg hunt!
Before the hunt we warmed up running on the beach!

My strategy was to find all of the hard to reach eggs first...I might have to change that up next year because I'm not sure I got as many as the other kids, including Ezekiel!
Luckily we all traded our plastic eggs in for a goodie bag!
Then with a little help from Papa I was brave enough to get close to the Easter bunny!

Back home we colored eggs and had lots of fun making them different colors!

Stay tuned for more Easter day pictures! And don't get me wrong, I do love all of the fun egg hunts but I also know the true meaning of Easter. Jesus died for us and he rose from the grave so that we could all go to heaven to live with him someday!

Spring is here!

2010-04-10T19:51:00.003-04:00

Seems like I've been waiting all year for Spring to arrive and it's finally here! That means lots of playing outside at the park! Today mom took us to the Biltmore Lake park and it's really cool because it has a little beach where we can find and throw seashells into the water. Not to mention the cool swings and slides! We even had a picnic lunch afterwards! I'm looking forward to lots of sunny days ahead!

Working in the yard!

2010-03-30T19:03:00.003-04:00

Spring is finally here! Some days are still a little cool but we get outside every chance we can! Since our house was built in the Fall, our grass didn't get much of a chance to grow, so dad and I decided to replant some of it. First we put out the grass seed, then we covered it with hay! As you can see, I was in charge of the hay!

The next day we found wild turkeys in our yard messing up all of our hard work! Zekey and I ran outside and gobbled at them and that at least scared them into the neighbor's yard!

St. Patrick's Day!

2010-03-23T18:00:00.006-04:00

I had lots of fun on St. Patrick's day! First we made green pancakes with Mama and boy were they good!

Then we had an all green dinner! Yum!
My favorite was the green jello for dessert!

Clifford the BIG red dog!

2010-03-18T15:08:00.005-04:00

Clifford the big red dog came to my library! After I saw that Zeke wasn't afraid to hug him I decided I could hug him too! He sure was big! And guess what? Clifford was also at my science museum! Here are a few pictures of me on Birdwell Island:

Sunday best!

2010-03-07T18:16:00.002-05:00

We all got ready for church today on time so Dad was kind enough to take some pictures of us before we left!

Unlike Zeke, I love going to church! I'm in the "bluebird" class and I get to do lots of fun stuff like coloring, crafts and of course lots of playing! For the past couple weeks Mom and Dad have been learning about the book of Jonah in their church! I think that is pretty cool!

Check-up

2010-03-04T14:55:00.003-05:00

I finally had my 4 year old check-up today and I got a clean bill of health! My doctor wanted me to wait until March to come in since there has been a lot of sick kiddos in the office this year and luckily I wasn't one of them! I got to do lots of fun stuff this time like get my blood pressure checked, an eye exam and a hearing test! All of which I passed with flying colors! I even brought my own stethescope just like the one my doctor has! He was pretty impressed. He asked me to do funny things like hop on one foot and sit down, cross my arms and get up without using my arms. I thought he was pretty silly. I weighed in at 43.4 lbs(90%)and I am 42.5 inches tall(84%).

Our new baby!

2010-02-24T19:34:00.004-05:00

Mom has another baby growing in her belly! Which will make me a big brother all over again! Just don't ask me how it got in there! He/She already has a blog too. You can check it out at: http://herzog3.blogspot.com or you can just click on the link titled Baby #3.
I love to talk to the new baby. I tell it I love it and kiss mom's belly button every night. I told mom that I wanted a girl because we already have enough boys in our house. She thinks it's a boy. Guess we'll have to wait and see!

Valentine's day!

2010-02-16T18:18:00.004-05:00

We had a fun Valentine's day! Mom let us make sugar cookies and decorate them with yummy sprinkles! Of course the best part was eating them! Then we found a package on our doorstep from Ma and Pa with all kinds of goodies in it! And Nana got us yummy chocolates and plants to grow. And today we got another package from Aunt Helen! What's a boy to do with all this LOVE?!

Silly boys!

2010-02-05T19:47:00.001-05:00

Who knew bath time could be so much fun?

My Big Show!

2010-01-24T18:56:00.003-05:00

Last week my class put on a big show for our parents at The Little Gym. Dad even got to come because it was a school holiday (Martin Luther King Jr. day)!
I had so much fun showing my parents how I can walk on the balance beam...
turn a somersault...
wait patiently for my turn...
and swing from the uneven bars...
The best part of the whole show: getting my shiny medal! I've worn it every day and only take it off to sleep.

I'm 4!

2010-01-20T13:31:00.006-05:00

The day before my birthday I told mom not to make me a cake! I told her I wasn't going to turn 4. After a few tears and lots of questions I found out that I don't have to start school on the day I turn 4. Apparently I have lots of time at home still. So I decided to celebrate!

First I had a birthday party while Ma and Pa were still here! Ma made my favorite...homemade pizza!

Then on my actual birthday all I wanted to do was go to Nana's house and eat Chinese food! So that's what we did! Actually we were supposed to spend the whole day there but our pipes froze so our friends came over to help and I got to play with my buddies Kathryn and Luke in the morning. Then my Pop took us out to an all you can eat Chinese buffet! I think they lost money on me! I found so many things I loved!

For my first party I ordered a heart cake but this time I wanted a bus! I even got to put the sprinkles on!

The cake was yummy!
I think Zekey enjoyed it too!
Turning 4 wasn't so bad after all!

Christmas with Ma and Pa!

2010-01-20T12:52:00.005-05:00

Our Christmas lasted an extra long time this year! Ma and Pa got to come the day after Christmas...actually 2 days after Christmas because of a flight cancellation and their luggage made it 4 days later! I was so excited to see them. Every time I see an airplane in the sky I think that Ma and Pa are in it! We had so much fun together and I can't wait for them to come back this summer!

Christmas in Georgia

2010-01-04T14:23:00.003-05:00

We weren't sure if we were going to make it to Georgia this year because of all the snow but we did! It's always a treat to go there and see our Great Aunt Con and Uncle Rob.

The Tree.

2010-01-04T14:16:00.000-05:00

I was very excited about decorating our Christmas tree this year. I knew exactly where each ornament should go. Zeke was more interested in trying to blow out the lights on the tree so I got to do all the fun stuff! I took my job very seriously.

First Snow!

2010-01-04T14:09:00.004-05:00

Right before Christmas we got our first big snow! We got more than a foot! I wasn't too interested in building snowmen, it was all about the snowball fights this year! And the yummy hot chocolate afterwards!

Warm Fall days!

2009-11-16T21:25:00.006-05:00

We've had some unusually warm days lately so we've been playing outside lots! My favorite thing to do is ride down the road in my little car. Mom is really looking forward to having a yard for us to play in but I think I'm gonna miss this old parking lot! Luckily it's not a very busy place or we wouldn't be able to have this much fun!

Here's me in action!

Happy Halloween!

2009-11-03T14:09:00.009-05:00

This year I wanted to be a lion for Halloween! Good thing it was chilly outside because this costume was toasty! All day I kept asking, "Is it trick-or-treat time yet?"

In the morning we went to Nana's house to carve our pumpkins into Jack-o-lanterns! Mom drew some pumpkin faces and I picked out a scary one for her to carve! I tried to help scoop out the pumpkin guts but it was a bit too messy for me!

The one on the left is my "scary" one and the one with the pacy Daddy made for Ezekiel!
After my nap Papa went with us to a "Trunk or Treat" party at a nearby church. My favorite was the bouncy slide!

Then it was home for some neighborhood trick or treating!
Quote of the day:
Jonah: "Trick-or-treat!"
Man: "Only treats here."
Jonah: "Sorry but we have to trick you too!"

Happy Halloween!

Swimming like a whale!

2009-10-30T19:54:00.002-04:00

"I'm so brave" I like to tell Mama as I'm about the jump off the diving board! And I finally made a breakthrough with my swimming! For a while I only had one arm that worked in the water but now look at me!

Happy Birthday Pop!

2009-10-30T15:01:00.002-04:00

Last weekend was also my great grandpa's birthday! He is 83 years young! Ezekiel and I call him Popperdoodledug! I even got to help him open his gifts and this year Zeke and I got him a train called Culdee. You see, Pop has a train track at his house that we play with when we visit him (I'm sure he plays with it when we're not there too)! I also got to put the candles in his cake and help him blow them out! The best part was the cake! Happy Birthday Pop! We love you!

Skytop Orchard

2009-10-30T14:52:00.002-04:00

Last weekend we hit our last pumpkin patch for the year! I loved running around and playing but I think my favorite part was the yummy donut I got!

Hickory Nut Gap

2009-10-21T13:58:00.005-04:00

Although this pumpkin patch didn't have cow rides, it did have a great maze (just my size). We had to answer trivia questions and choose which path to take.
We found lots of cool wooly worms which I carefully picked up and placed out of the way.
We played in a giant haystack!
I cheesed it up as a scarecrow!
And got kisses from a baby goat!

Treats!

2009-10-21T13:49:00.002-04:00

No tricks in here! Just treats!
Thanks Uncle Scotty Bumps and Auntie Sarah! Mom thinks her treats were the best but I'm pretty sure my scary pumpkin thing is cooler! And I used my new pen to draw lines all over myself...just wanted to see what it was like to be a zebra! We even got to eat the chocolates this year!

Pumpkin Time!

2009-10-04T19:50:00.004-04:00

I've been waiting all year for pumpkin time! Last year I had so much fun running through the corn mazes, I couldn't wait to do it again! There are lots of orchards around here and I plan on touring them all! Our first stop was called "Grandad's".
First we checked out the animals.
Then we posed (some better than others) for a Harvest picture. Dad, you're making us look bad!
Drove a tractor!
Made friends with a scarecrow!
Checked out some apples.
Then off to the corn maze! This year we had to find 5 different tractor signs hidden in the maze.
I got to ride on Daddy's shoulders so I could help spot them!

My favorite part of the whole days was the cow ride! I chose one named Lady. It was a long ride too! We went all around the farm, over lots of bumps!
Then before heading home I showed off my muscles for the girls! What a fun day!

Build and Grow!

2009-09-29T15:32:00.007-04:00

Now I see why mom always wants to go to Lowes! Although she never comes home with stuff this cool. I'm building a fire truck today!
Mom and I were a team this time and she's showing me how to read the directions...unlike Dad and Ezekiel who had to take theirs apart and start over!

After a few pounds with the hammer I got a bit bored so I took over the camera duties! Here's a cool police car!
Nice pumpkin.
My blue baby!
A real fire truck!
Nana showing Zekey the fire truck.
The fire truck was cool but I was more into the ambulance. I found a nice comfy chair and made myself at home!

Little Gym

2009-09-25T15:14:00.002-04:00

I love this place! I'm learning all kinds of cool things at the Little Gym! I get to climb, hang, flip, jump and play lots of fun games. Ezekiel and Mommy get to watch me and then (because it's so close to nap time) we get to eat a picnic lunch in the car on the ride home! I'm usually pretty tuckered out after class. Mom is so proud of me because she can tell I'm a really good listener and I always do what my teacher says.

"Oh dear what can the matter be?"

2009-09-19T11:00:00.004-04:00

"Jonah's so long at the fair!" (Ezekiel has been into nursery rhymes lately and we've been singing this one a lot!)
My Papa took me to the fair and I had a great time! I was so excited about going that I skipped my nap! I rode tons of rides and Papa had to keep buying me more tickets!

For dinner I had a nutritious ice cream cone...
...and a corn dog! The corn dog was free because I fell right in front of the stand and skinned up my knee so the nice man gave me a corn dog to make it feel better! Then I was out like a light before we even left the parking lot, slept all the way home and my parents tried to slip me into bed but I remembered that I needed a bath first! Mom was pretty proud, if it were up to Dad we'd maybe get a bath once a week... but Mom makes sure we get one every night!

3 years, 8 months

2009-09-09T12:19:00.002-04:00

Sporting the buzz cut! Dad likes to get matching haircuts with me...or is it the other way around? I'm settling into the routine of Dad working again. We try to keep busy but we miss him! My favorite thing to do is hide when he gets home. No rushing to the door with big hugs, that's a thing of the past! Dad always says he's really tired when he gets home and as luck would have it he wants to lay down right where I'm hiding! I squeal and laugh usually before he even lays down! Then we play real hide-n-seek, I love that game! I also love picnics on the living room floor, under tents is the best! I'm working real hard on listening and obeying...mom is ready for the 3's to be over! We won't go into any details... I'm also learning how to write my name. I've got the J, O and n down so far. Mom was talking to me about preschool the other day (I'll start next year at Daddy's school) and I said, "Sure, I'll go and teach the kids." Should my teacher be worried? Well, that's all for now. TTFN!