Joshua and Jacob Rips

Joshua was the "poster boy" for his preschool this year. A photographer was taking pictures of children at school. Ultimately Joshua's picture was chosen for use in an ad for the school. This poster appeared in bus shelters around Huntington Beach, CA. Joshua was very proud that his picture was displayed around the city. Jacob seemed to be certain he was in one of the pictures somewhere. He asked, "Which one is me?" {Photo courtesy the Rips family.}

Jacob was Thomas the Tank Engine and Joshua was an Engineer for Halloween 2003. {Photo courtesy the Rips family.}

Joshua, the engineer. Note that he's holding his whistle, ready to blow! {Photos courtesy the Rips family.}

Jacob, the dalmatian. Jacob decided to dress in his "puppy pup" costume from 2001 for his studio photo. {Photos courtesy the Rips family.}

Jacob and Joshua were joined by big sister Ellie (Rapunzel) for an additional photo. {Photo courtesy the Rips family.}

Jacob {L} and Joshua {R} began preschool in the fall of 2003. {Photos courtesy the Rips family.}

Where are They Now?

December 2003: At age 3 1/2 the boys are still enjoying their hiatus from Hollywood. They are typical 3 1/2 year old boys who enjoy trains, trucks, playing on the computer, and (occasionally) bugging their older sister. They are having a great time in preschool and love their teachers and new friends. Joshua says that his favorite thing to do at school is play Play-Doh (it is BANNED at home). Jacob says that he likes to play Bristle Blocks with his friend Daniel.

Jacob {R} and Joshua {L} crash on the couch, giving their parents a few moments of peace. The boys have lots of energy these days. On Thanksgiving, the boys put on an impromptu show for the family. They stood on the cedar chest in the living room and started with one song that they learned in preschool. After the family applauded, they both sang every song they could think of and the show went on for about thirty minutes! {Photos courtesy the Rips family.}

Look at these handsome boys! Jacob {right} and Joshua {left} wore tuxedos for their Aunt Risa's wedding in June 2004. They picked out their shoes, preferring tennis shoes to dress shoes. Although Jacob was initially reluctant to wear it, he finally agreed that they would wear his "taquito." {Photos courtesy the Rips family.}

The Rips family, June 2004. Jeffrey, Lauren, Ellie, Joshua {left} and Jacob {right}. {Photos courtesy the Rips family.}

Jacob broke his arm when he fell off his scooter in late 2004. He had a huge plaster cast on his right arm. Every night, before the boys go to bed, they have to choose their clothing for the next day and make their own "pile" in their room. They usually do not want to wear matching clothing now, as they are two individual little boys. One night, the boys told their mom that they wanted to fool people at school and dress alike. They chose matching shirts and shorts, then each chose a different color pair of socks. They decided that to really fool people, they would need to each wear one color sock from each pair. Off they went to school, each wearing one brown and one green sock with their matching clothing. Now, do you think that they fooled anyone with Jacob's arm in that cast? They insist they fooled their teacher and their friends.... boys! {Photos courtesy the Rips family.}

The boys {Jacob, L and Joshua, R} share their fifth birthday, a cake, and some brotherly love. To celebrate their big birthday, the boys took their first trip to Disneyland. {Photo courtesy the Rips family.}

Can you believe the boys have already started Kindergarten? Here they are on the first day of school in the fall of 2005. {Photo courtesy the Rips family.}

The boys played for the Red Scorpions soccer team in 2005. {Photos courtesy the Rips family.}

Joshua {R} and Jacob {L} at the end of their kindergarten year in 2006. The boys are in different classes and seem to enjoy school. {Photo courtesy the Rips family.}

Jacob and Joshua became Cub Scouts at the end of kindergarten. Jacob chose to be silly for the photos of the event. {Photo courtesy the Rips family.}

Jacob (left) and Joshua (right) celebrate New Year's 2007. {Photo courtesy the Rips family.}