Monday, August 31, 2009

Painting the Town

It's no secret that life at home with small children can get a little...uh...hairy, at times. Especially those days when you're all stuck at home. Lately, we've been having a lot more of those "home" days. Although we'd all much rather be at the park, lunch with friends, or just running errands, the fact of the matter is that I just can't do it everyday! So in an effort to help combat The Deuce from running around the house like the hooligans that they are, I thought I would introduce a little structured play. So, the boys and I tried our hand at finger painting this week. Not quite ready for the "real" stuff, I concocted a recipe from the web, 2 tablespoons of flour, water (add to desired consistency), and a drop of food coloring. They painted on wax paper taped to their trays and when they were done, I pressed a piece of paper down on top of the wax paper to transfer their art work.

Little Picasso's, I tell ya!
-Utter concentration-
Diggin' the mess!
I love Abe's *paintin* face!
Ben looks like he's got a busted lip but it's just paint :)

Ben's Masterpiece!
A.B.'s Masterpiece!

Friday, August 28, 2009

Night and Day

The photographer could not have captured their personalities any more...

Man, do I love these boys.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

18 Months Old!

Today marks the boys' half birthday! It seems like just yesterday that we were celebrating their 1st and now we're halfway to their 2nd! Time flies when you're going nutty having fun!

Truly though, 18 months feels like the biggest milestone so far. Long gone are my wee babes and in their place are two fast, curious, and VERY independent toddlers. Toddlers who prefer to use utensils at almost every meal, even if it's breakfast and they're having toast. Toddlers who cry if we pass the park on our evening walk. Toddlers who ask for snacks and juice and who like to watch Sprout and dance to anything with a beat. It's crazy. And amazing. And exhausting. And I wouldn't trade it for the world.

The last couple of months have marked so much in terms of discovery and learning for our little men. There seems to have been a vocabulary explosion and B&A are picking up words left and right. My personal favorites are Abe's "shoes" which sounds more like "chews" and Ben's "Hello" which sounds like "He-wro." Another beloved pastime of our guys is looking at animals and mimicking their sounds. So far, they're particular to the snake and the monkey. They will stop ANYTHING that they are doing if they see or hear a dog (or what they call a "du") and they love to give "pats" and "love" to any animal who will give them the time of day. It's very sweet to see and quite comical when it involves them chasing one of their furry friends. Our Mister A.B. loves him some book time too. Oh my, does he ever! I spend most of my day feeding, changing, breaking up fights, and reading books. Usually the same one too. Over and over. And over. And when daddy gets home, he has to read it too. Over and over. I say it with sarcasm but really it's one of the sweetest things about that boy. He loves to read and we desire to help grow that love. So we read his books. Over and over. And try to relish the fact that all too soon he will no longer need us or want us to.

As for how the boys are responding to mom's growing belly...well, they're not so much. They will pat my belly and lift up my shirt to poke my belly button (part of a game we play) but that's about it. We talk about the baby and practice holding the baby and yet it all still seems like just fun and games. It's not really something I'm worried about though. I think for the most part my attitude is that we will just take it as it comes and over time we all adjust. Lord willing, it will be smoother than not. It is getting harder to maneuver with them though. Lifting is still not much of an issue but lap time is rough. Little elbows and knees dig in to an already tender belly and it's not much fun. We just keep reiterating that you have to be gentle and you can't climb on momma. From the way things continue though, I think it probably sounds something like "wah wah wah wah, wah wah wah wah" to them. My little Charlie Brown's! Gentle, they are not.

Another interesting wave that's hit our house as of late is that Ben's upright! Although most of his walking is just done between momma and dada, it's walking nonetheless. Atta boy, Ben!

Monday, August 24, 2009

A Little Taste of Our Keys

Our time back since our little family jaunt to the Florida Keys has naturally been filled with much to do to get us all back into the swing of things. However, I just couldn't resist reminiscing through some pictures last night and picking a few to post. Just a little taste of the our week if you will...









Wednesday, August 19, 2009

22 Weeks

My blossoming belly, all the way from The Keys!

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

According to Jer, Part. V

[Jer: Upon opening Abe's messy diaper and finding an EXTREMELY disturbing...eh...color...]

"Ah! What did we eat today, Mister?! Coffee? Tar? Shredded Death?"

Good gracious. I love this man and his bust-a-gut commentary.

And just because I know inquiring minds will want to know, the answer was blueberries. And it will be a LOOOOOOONG time before I give those to The Deuce again.


Sunday, August 9, 2009

Halfway There and Some Videos Too!

Last week marked the halfway point to "D" day for #3! HALFWAY! Doesn't that just seem so surreal?! I just still can't get my head around the fact that in 19 weeks we, Lord willing, will have another baby at the house! It's just right around the corner...

We also had our 20 week ultrasound and check up last week and things looked great! The baby was super active and we got a great look at everything...well...almost everything! That part will still be a surprise for the delivery room! It was absolutely incredible to be able to see the baby in 4D though. Just a totally different experience than the ultrasounds we had with the boys. I must say, I was a little taken aback to at being able to see so much resemblance between this baby and the boys, and so early on too! Jer and I also see a lot of my dad's side in this baby as well. I see my Mazzzz mostly. That makes me happy. It also makes me anxious to meet this baby and put the whole package together!

Enjoy the videos! No sound.

#3 bobbing head and moving hand


#3 opening and closing mouth


#3 turning over