Memorial Day

Memorial Day might be my favorite holiday. No gifts to stress about or decorations to dig out. No fancy meals to cook. You can stay home or go somewhere. It's a time to remember and honor. And to enjoy the beginning of summer.

We're having a good one.

Friday night was an impromtu BBQ with neighbors, complete with s'mores. Brooke and her buddy had a ball. Have you eaten s'mores lately? You really should.





On Saturday we got out the swimming pools for the first time this year. Bubbles and sand, too.






I earned some major mom points with the water table. Nate loves to stand and splash and Brooke works it into her little make-believe world.




Sunday was church and off to another BBQ with some really good long-time friends that we don't get to see often. We've both added baby boys to our families since we saw them last. We've missed them. It was so fun to catch up and watch our kiddos play together.

We're having fun, but we've gotten some things done, too. Scot stained the deck and we made a major dent in our this-might-require-professional-help-to-organize basement. I just wasn't inspired to grab the camera for that one.

Summertime

Summer came this week, complete with mosquitoes and humidity. I LOVE it! (I'll probably have an "It's Too Hot" post in a few weeks.)

Our roses finally decided to bloom.



When I bought this bush it was COVERED in roses. Fast-forward two weeks, and it was on the verge of death. But it perked back up and looks like it might survive my brown thumb.

We also planted some seeds so Brooke could watch them turn to flowers. It's two months later and we're still waiting. I can't remember what we planted, so not exactly sure what we're looking for here.




I told Brooke that flowers don't like to be touched and tried to keep her out of them. Naturally, she wanted to touch them every time she saw them. After a few days of that I gave up.



She's actually very gentle with them. Maybe they just need a little of her TLC.

Grandma's House

We spent the weekend in southern Missouri at Grandma's house. (We explained to Brooke that Grandma lets Papa live at her house, too.) We all had a great time, and you know I took a billion pictures!

We took the kiddos to a place called the Discovery Playhouse. Brooke and Nate both loved every minute. We started with a ride on the firetruck.



On to a little grocery shopping. Not my idea of fun, but to each her own.




Brooke loves trains. She talked to the trains while she pushed them around the little track. We sat back and watched her in her own little world. So sweet.



We also saw a bug exhibit, did some crafts, played in the sand table, played with magnets, and you name it. Brooke had a blast.

There were all kinds of things for Nate to do, too. These are some of my favorite pics:


Is it possible to catch air when crawling?






When we got home we played outside. It was so nice to be out in the warm weather. The next day we went to church and played some more before heading home.

Wait a minute! I can't talk about a trip to Grandma's house without talking desserts. Oh, the desserts. This weekend we had strawberries dipped in chocolate, shoo-fly pie and strawberry shortcake. For Brooke, eating is still a full-out sensory experience. Can you blame her?



Such a fun weekend. Thank you both!

Just Relax

The hubby came home with coffee and we have leftover chocolate cake. The baby is finally sleeping. Brooke is at the "haircut store" with Daddy getting her bangs trimmed. The TV is turned to a "mommy show" and I have a new magazine to read. Not bad for Mama.

Have a good weekend. :-)

It's Just a Phase

Brooke is in a really sweet phase right now. Everything is alive. The bottles in the bathtub, the fork and spoon at dinner, and all of her toys. I love to watch her pretend.



She loves to dress up, too. She pulls dresses and jewelry out of her little dress up box everyday and doesn't want to take them off. And I don't ask her to. It's awfully cute. I love that girl.




Nate is in a more, um, high-maintenance phase. Within the last couple of weeks he's picked up crawling and cruising. Before this, he was doing a very mom-friendly belly- scooting thing. He could get where he wanted to go, but not at lightening speed. No more. Now I turn around for a second and he's up the steps, trying to open the toilet, or tormenting Brooke.

Nate has eight teeth and isn't afraid to use them. He'll eat anything he can get into his little mouth. Yesterday he chewed the button off of a play phone and ate a flower Brooke brought home from the park. He reminds me of those little Roomba vacuums that buzz around and clean the house.



Nate eats his crib, too. See the fabric wrapped around the top? That is not the latest in nursery decor. Nathan is under the impression that he can chew his way through his crib and into freedom, ala Shawshank Redemption. He might be right. He's splintered the wood in one spot with all his chewing.

I will say this about Nate, though: he is just about the happiest little thing I've ever seen. He laughs and loves to chase and be tickled. He finds joy in everything. He lights up every time he sees one of us. I hope that phase sticks.

Tough Love

Hello, my name is Brooke. I really love my baby brother.

I like to hug him.





Do you see the way I'm gritting my teeth? That's my I-love-you-so-much-I-want-to-squish-you hug. In wrestling, it's called the "sleeper hold." I don't care how many times I get put in time-out, I'm going to keep doing it. It's my thing.


We play peek-a-boo, too.



Nathan likes this MUCH better than my hugs.


We also watch the rain outside when we can't go out to play.



Even though I can be a little rough, I love my little brother. Hopefully he'll remember that in the not-so-distant future when he's bigger than me.

Love, Brooke

We Just Pay the Bills

The kiddos have officially taken over the house. I say "officially" because the formal dining room has become a playroom. Come over and this is what you'll see when you walk in the door:







This really shouldn't be that big of a deal. After all, its not like we did a lot of fine dining to begin with. In the four years we've lived here we have eaten at the dining room table exactly one time. The china lined up in the cabinet? Never touched. And this is one of the biggest rooms in the house, so it's silly to let it sit when we need the space. Still, it's a little shocking to walk into the house and see our grown-up dining room gone.



Hi there, wine rack. Remember when you were filled with wine from Illinois vineyards and the brightly-colored glasses I bought just to display on you? You're off to the basement. A certain energetic young man attempted to climb you just this morning.

The change is good, though. I know a couple of little people that are liking the new room. I guess I can get on board with that.

Happy Mommy Day!

That's how my daughter, Brooke, wished me a happy Mother's Day on Sunday. And it was a happy Mother's Day. Our family came to town and we dedicated our son, Nathan, at church. Do we acknowledge that Nathan is a blessing from God? Absolutely. Even when he's screaming at the top of his lungs in his bed and fighting his second ear infection in a month (like right now).





After church we grilled up some steaks and had strawberry shortcake for dessert. The babies napped and we all sat around and watched some baseball. It was an awesome, relaxing day.

Me? A blogger????

I have always been impressed with my blogging friends. The time, thoughtfulness, and downright dedication it takes amazes me. There are the cute topics, the pictures, the music to accompany the blog...

am I ACTUALLY going to do this?

I don't know. But I do know that I am loving my life right now and want to record everything that's going on. I'm realistic, though. Before my daughter was born I bought a big scrapbook and a few supplies so I could create a beautiful keepsake for her. Never happened. I also bought baby books for each of my two children. My daughter's baby book is mostly filled out. I even added a few pictures on the pages that call for them. My 10-month-old-son's book, however, is another story. Poor guy. I'm too busy actually taking care of him and chasing his sister around to sit around and document it.

Is this blog thing actually going to happen? I guess we'll see. If it doesn't, then, hey, I tried. In the meantime, here's a pic of the little guys, who may never know anything about their childhood thanks to their slacker mom. :-)