Melissa and her girls!

Last month we were blessed to have 2 wonderful days with my best friend and her 2 precious girls! We hadn't seen each other since Ethan was a newborn, and it was so fun catching up and letting our kiddos play together (which they did very well!). Ayden cried and cried and cried when they left...and I'm not gonna lie, so did I! We had a big ole' sobfest when they drove away! I dream about a day when we live closer than 600 miles apart! Maybe someday! :) Here are some pics of our 2 days of fun!

Perfectly posed little smilers!
Future Mr. and Mrs.? :)

Our traditional PJ pic! We take one everytime we get together and then marvel (and cry) at how much they've
grown and changed each time!

these 2 go together like a wink and a smile ;)

picnic at the park!

I could cuddle this sweet girl forever! love her!

truly the definition of BFF's!!!

Family night at the creek!

Since I started working every weekend back in May, we set aside at least one weeknight where the boys get to stay up past their bedtime, the TV stays off, and we do something fun together as a family! Ayden loves this tradition and tells anyone and everyone all about our family nights! We are having a great time making happy memories! This week we went swimming in a creek that Chris discovered on one of the bike trails where he rides. Ayden had more fun than he's ever had in a pool, and decided he wanted to "move to the creek and live there forever" :)

Happiness!



My baby doesn't look like a baby anymore! ;(

serious about that splashin'!

This boy loves his daddy!

this one too!

stopping for a pic with mom!

22 months!!!

Our handsome, spirited, lovable, rotten little boy is 22 months old today! I normally don't like the cliche' "terrible two's", but it was certainly the passionate behaviors of children such as little E that coined the cliche' to begin with!! However, terrible is, well, a terrible word! There is nothing terrible about this child....he is precious and wonderful and everything that a toddler should be.... with a little extra oomph! lol!!

A few of Little E's favorite things:

-His binky! (he calls it his "Buhhh!!!!!!") I've decided to let him keep it until he's 2, although I am trying to keep it out of sight/out of mind as much as possible.
-Looking at books and pointing out pictures when we ask
-Watching Yo Gabba Gabba, and now, Barney!
-Dancing!
-Playing with the cat! He squeals when he sees Max, and chases him, saying "Keee Keee!!" He can also say Max!
-Playing with his bubba!
-Rocking and singing at bedtime. Melts my heart when his normally non-stop little self nestles his head onto my shoulder and hums with me while I sing to him.He loves for daddy to rock him too!
-Being silly with momma and laughing!
-Running! All the time and everywhere!

Everyone else in the family (including Chris) thinks Ethan is much more "spirited" than Ayden was at this age...but as the person who spends the vast majority of the time with them, I can assure you, Ayden was just like him! I occassionally see toddlers that sit quietly and play in a 2 foot radius of their parents...my boys have NEVER been like that! Ayden had to be kept in a stroller, on a kid leash, or within a fenced perimeter until he was at least 3! Always exploring, searching, and on the go, thats how both the boys have been! And...when you try to stop them (for their own safety!), they scream!! I think the difference in them is that E is a significantly LOUDER screamer than Ayden was! lol! I love my toddler tornado and wouldn't change a thing about him. This too shall pass! Until then, we stay home, A LOT :)

Happy 22 months Little E!

I miss my blog!!

I just logged on to write Ethan's 22 month post, and saw that my last post was his 21 month! Believe it or not, we do a few more things around here than just sit around waiting for Ethan's monthly updates, lol! Just a quick blip, I love my new job in the NICU, but between my Fri, Sat, and Sun nights there, and Mon-Fri days at home chasing the monkeys, I have very little free time these days! But thats ok! We're having a super fun summer and I have lots of pics to post...soon, very soon I promise!!

21 months!

Ethan Jeffrey at 21 months old:

LOVES:
-playing with cars and trucks, complete with making all the "driving" noises
-playing in kiddie pool, sprinkler, or bathtub
-getting into pantry and fridge for snacks, especially "bapples" (apples)
-playing with big brother and the dogs
-doing the exact thing you just told him not to do with a "what are you gonna do about it?" look
-going bye-bye, but he still just says one long, low "Byeeee"
-his binky!! We are going to have a heck of a time taking that thing away, I can already tell!

NEW STUFF!
-Sleeping in a toddler bed! He made the transition with barely a moment's pause! He is still a great sleeper, and stays in bed all night! We have a gate at his door, and when he wakes up in the morning he goes to the gate hollering "momma! dada!"
-Naming family members by looking at pictures
-Going through the house and bringing us all the things that belong to each of us. He will get one or both of Chris' phones and run through the house yelling "da-da!" taking them to him. He repeats this with my phone, Nook, Chris' iPad, basically anything just sitting around, and he always takes it to the right person!
-He jabbers with lots of voice inflections and emotions all day long, but still isn't saying a lot that we understand. We have learned to interpret most of his jibberish. He understands and follows 2-3 step commands and understands everything we say. For example, if I say we're going outside, he goes and gets his shoes and brings them to me, without me ever saying anything about shoes! He is very smart! But, just like with everything else with Mr. E, he will talk in his own time!

Big boy in his big bed!

Meet Max!!

Just when I think I can't add any more chaos or pet hair (or testosterone for that mattter!) to this house....I go and decide to give in to Ayden's incessant requests for a kitten! If you're thinking I need my head checked, you are correct, but regardless, I have one very ecstatic new cat owner!

We have been discussing it for awhile, especially since Ayden decided he wanted a little yorkie like great-grandma's, but I was not about to take on a 3rd dog and all the housetraining involved. He was thrilled at the idea of getting a kitten! We visited a local shelter, and after seeing the age of the boys, they suggested an older kitten who wasn't skiddish. So we chose this little guy! He's 3 months old and already neutered and is a very affectionate and calm kitten! We had a horrific experience introducing him to Andy, so we have since kept the dogs and cat in separate quarters and plan to "gradually" socialize them. Really hoping it works out! I never dreamed of seeing such agression from Andy!! Ayden chose the name after his favorite cartoon Max and Ruby (although it's about rabbits, but oh well, its cute anyway!). He loves playing with him and of course carrying him around. He is covered in scratches but not because Max is agressive, but just because he is an active kitten! We plan to get him declawed very soon. Chris isn't a fan of cats, so he's just taking having a cat in house all in stride, but seeing how happy Max makes Ayden helps quite a bit! Max loves being around all of us and sits on our shoulders like a parrot! Welcome to the family, Max!


Max wants Ayden to hold him instead of playing games!
or does he just want a skittle? lol!

iPhone Snippets from our days!

Hanging out downtown!



sweet baby love!



sweet big boy love!



leashing the wild animal!

Ayden's favorite part of our family walks/bikerides is the creek on the trail!

He rules the roost!

This is how we start our mornings!

One of Ethan's favorite places!

Bath night!

all snuggly after a bath!



silly!

Mother's Day 2012

One of my favorite days of the year was made even more special this year by having my mom and both my Grandma and Grammie join us at our house for a Mother's Day lunch! It was so nice having them all here! My sweet hubby and boys got me cards to make me cry, and installed a new window box planter full of flowers and a hummingbird feeder outside the kitchen window. It was a wonderful day!

I am SO blessed to be the mom of these boys!!!

Last day of MDO!

The boys' last day of MDO was about 3 weeks ago. In one way, I am as excited as a kid for summer break, but in another way, I'm gonna miss those 2 days of mommy time! The boys were both so blessed with such wonderful teachers this year and I really love our church and the MDO program there. I now have exactly 1 year and 3 months to prepare myself to send my first born to kindergarten! I cry at least once a week just thinking about it. I know that's ridiculous...but it's such a huge and important and memorable milestone, and I can't believe I will have a child old enough to reach it! I feel like I just had him!!! I know all you mommies out there who have already sent your baby off to kindergarten know exactly how I feel! Anyway, I am very thankful that he doesn't meet the kindergarten age requirement this year...although he only misses it by 17 days! That is very okay with me! He is such a smart, sweet, wonderful boy, and I know he would do great if he went this year, but that means I get a whole other year of keeping him my baby boy! This week we are going to tour a private preschool with an excellent pre-K program that we would like for him to start in the fall. It's 3 days a week, which would be the most he's ever been away from home, but a great preparation for kindergarten! We love his MDO, but the days they offer aren't going to work with my new work schedule. I plan to only send Ethan to MDO one day a week (if I can find one that is open on Mondays) so we'll have 2 days of mommy and Ethan time! I'm excited about that too! Here's a pic of my sweet, quickly-growing boys on the first (August 16th, 2011) and last (May 17th, 2012) days of MDO this year!

A month behind??!!

I just realized I haven't posted in a month!! Believe it or not, it's not even my fault. I'm sure you're thinking it's my new job and all the long hours and sleepless days keeping me from blogging. But the truth is, it's BLOGGER'S fault!! After being a loyal blogger since Oct.2007, I was informed on my last update attempt that I have "reached my limit of photo space" and must now pay a monthly fee to continue. So I just flat out decided to boycott blogging for awhile! But, alas, Blogger never even noticed that I had stopped blogging, but I realized that I missed it and was letting lots of great pics go unnoticed on my memory card. So I'm gonna bite the bullet and pay the $2 a month fee (a colossal amount, I know), so that I can let the blogging continue! So get ready, lots of blog posts heading your way!