Sometimes and Always #7

I can't believe another Tuesday is here (and almost gone) again.  Is it just me or is the summer flying by?  I'm linking up again with Megan over at Mackey Madness because these posts really get me to "come out of my shell" a little.  Hope you all are having a great Tuesday!

Sometimes - I feel so unappreciated at work.  *Sigh*  It has just been one of those days.

Always - I am just thankful to have a decent job these days and hopeful of future prospects as I grow my career and education.


Sometimes - I really get so fed up with how rude people can be.  Seriously, it's like rules (social or otherwise) just don't apply to them.  *Sigh again* Just one of those days!

Always - Thankful that I was "raised" right and know how to use my manners and treat people with respect even when they don't do the same to me.  Golden rule, folks!

Sometimes - I can't believe how quickly time seems to be passing.  Is it really already the end of July?

Always - I am anxiously awaiting our beach trip at the end of August although that means I will also be returning to school for another grueling semester.

Sometimes - I can't believe Evan starts Kindergarten in just a few weeks!

Always - I am so proud of him and know he is ready!

He made it to W in one of his summer workbooks.  This is just a refresher since he already knows how to write all his letters.  

He started math!  He is learning to add with the help of his nanny!

Sometimes - I can't believe a good deal!

Always - I have to snatch up a good deal when I see it!  These books at Target were a great find in the $1 bins, and I had to snatch them up for the boys' collection.

Sometimes - I am so sad for my little guys when they have to endure painful shots.

Always - I am so thankful for vaccines that keep our little ones safe from terrible diseases!

Brody did so well getting his 15 month shots and barely whimpered.  He went right to sleep in the car...takes a lot out of a little one!

Sometimes - I just need to see these faces to remind me that everything is right in the world.

Always - I need to get home and give them all a big hug and kiss.

What I'm Lovin' Monday #5

I am going to keep up this Monday lovin' thing because it is a good way to start my week on a happy note.  I have so many new things to love each week (that usually do involve my children because let's face it...they are the loves of my life!).    

Loving the Olympics!  Who isn't?  I love watching with my boys and seeing Evan develop a whole new appreciation for his country as he walks/runs around the house chanting "Go America!"  His favorites so far have been volleyball and ping pong.  Ha!  My favorites are swimming and diving and gymnastics.  I have a feeling our national anthem will become a regular theme song in our house as Evan tends to hum or sing tunes that he likes or gets stuck in his head.  I'm glad because maybe that'll replace the Star Wars music.

Loving that I only have two more classes left of summer school and get a couple weeks break before fall semester starts...although I do have a final paper to write.  It's been a fine class, but I am DONE!


Loving doughnuts!  Oh yes, hot Krispy Kreme ones!  But who doesn't?




Loving babies who are starting to look and act like big boys!  This weekend, this baby has really been acting like such a toddler.  He is walking independently more and more, and I get excited every time I see him making his way across the room on his own.  I love when he climbs into one of his chairs (this one in the living room that is big brother's or one in the playroom at his little table) on his own and turns around and just looks so big!  Of course, it makes me a little sad too that my baby boy is growing up so fast.




Loving boys who love the water.  Brody has learned a few new tricks lately at the pool.  Apparently, he likes to dip his head backwards into the water to wet his hair and also is doing better keeping his head out of the water when floating on his tummy.  We may have started him a little early in his swim vest, but he doesn't like riding in a float so we needed something.






Loving this face, but what else is new!



Reminds me a lot of this picture of Evan at about the same age since they both look like they are going to eat me!  (This comparison is for you, Natalie, since I know how much you love them!)



Loving boys having a sword fight together.  I wish I had gotten a better video of this one.  They surprised me when they came into my room with swords.  Brody was so cute swinging his sword while attempting to walk and coming after his big brother.  I think they had been watching fencing!  Yes, I see lots of this action in my future.  The video is a little dark and hard to see in the beginning, and I wish I would have gotten the video started earlier.  I open the curtains in the room about halfway into the video, but Brody then takes more interest in the window and curtain than the fight.  Still cute though!

Brody at 15 Months

Brody, you are 15 months old!  I haven't been doing a monthly post since you turned one, but you have really been changing so much lately so I don't want to forget what you are doing now.

• You are scheduled to go to the doctor for your 15 month check up and shots on Monday, but you had to go to the doctor this week because you ran a slight but constant fever for several days this week.  We wanted to be assured that it wasn't something bacterial like an ear infection.  They actually thought your throat looked red and did a swab, but it appears to have been something viral.  Your fever cleared up on the third day, and you have been as right as rain since.  You weighed 23 lbs. 6 oz. 

You definitely know how to pose for pictures now.

And you are just the cutest, happiest little boy.

And what a sweetie.  You are learning to flirt and for some reason flirt with the checkout girls at Target and other strangers you "meet" by giving them the sweetest smiles!

You still love that silky!

• You finally started walking at 14 months, but you still prefer crawling as your main mode of transportation.  You walk when we stand you up and make you let go and can walk a pretty long distance until you get tired and just sit down and crawl to wherever you want to go.  

You're proud when you walk by yourself!

• You still love the water and unfortunately have discovered that toilets contain water.  We can't leave you alone for a second near the bathroom, or we'll soon hear some splashing noises.  

Bath time is so fun now...and messy.  You love pouring your bucket of water all over everywhere. 

• You had a problem biting for a while which I think was related to the fact that you have a record number of teeth.  You had all of your teeth except two canines and your second year molars before your first birthday!  You hadn't bitten any of us in a while, but you have actually started back this week.  You actually bit mommy tonight because she wasn't "paying attention to you."  We don't like getting mad or upset at you because you are usually so sweet about it and act like you are giving us love just before sinking those sharp little teeth into some skin.  

How could we ever get mad at a face like this?

• You still love to eat and still usually eat better than big brother.  We definitely don't have to beg you to eat all your food.  We also haven't found too much you don't like, and you eat a lot of what we eat now. Fruit is still one of your favorite things to eat, but you also love grilled chicken, ground beef, beef hotdogs, macaroni and cheese, pasta, and will eat veggies usually if they are mixed up in food.  For fresh veggies (technically it is a fruit but we are considering it a veggie here), you do seem to like roma tomatoes, and Mommy is going to keep giving you other fresh veggies to entice you to like them.  

I don't take many pictures of my boy eating, but I got this one on my phone because it was a funny thing.  We went to a favorite pizza restaurant and had ordered a pizza.  I got a salad which came first.  As I was preparing to eat it, this long armed baby reached out and snatched a piece of leafy green lettuce and stuffed it in his mouth.  Apparently, he was hungry.  He then proceeded to whine for more so I guess he liked it or the balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing!

Another one caught on my phone of him enjoying one of his favs...mac and cheese!

• We still tease you and say you'd rather be a dog than a human because you love crawling on all fours while retrieving and holding things in your mouth.  You also refuse to say much in human language!  We love our little puppy-baby!

You were carrying around your toothpaste with your teeth.

• You love getting into everything and are a MESS.  We keep boxes of toys in every room and still you insist on wanting to play with things that aren't toys.  You love the TV remotes and know exactly what to do with them as you aim it purposefully at the TV, grin, and change whatever channel your big brother is watching.  This, of course, infuriates big brother, but you seem to get a real kick out of it.  You love pulling all of Mommy's and big brother's books off their shelves too and are also like a little tornado when you go into big brother's room and start pulling out shirts from his drawers and tossing them on the floor.  You don't pull out things to play with them; you just seem to like making messes!  

You had gotten hold of Daddy's sunglasses and thought you were so funny!

One of your favorite places to play is on the fireplace hearth, and you have a box of toys up there.  Here you had gotten into Mommy's box of old photo books. 

• You also love paper of any kind.  You love getting the phone books or old magazines out of drawers and tearing out pages and getting little sets of old matching cards and just throwing them around.  Luckily, we have lots of these items that we don't mind you messing up.  

• You still love your sleep and still sleep all night in your crib!  

One of my favorite pictures of you sleeping.  Mommy was trying out the new camera, and your room was actually pitch black.  I am surprised the flash didn't wake you up!

• You love sitting on the bathroom counter brushing your teeth with Mommy and will often end up sitting in the sink.  

Our morning ritual involves you sitting on the sink brushing your teeth while Mommy finishes getting ready. 

• You learned to give love but mostly to stuffed animal friends.

This is what you did when Mommy told you to give love to your lion friend.

• You love music, and you know how to turn on the stereo to play it!  Mommy keeps some kid friendly CD's in the stereo, and you know how to open the cabinet and hit the correct button to make the music play.  Then, you stand or sit there and dance and clap your little hands to the music.  It is so sweet!  

You don't look happy in this picture, but you love music.  You will sit or stand there after turning it on and bop up and down to the beat and clap your little hands or beat them on the floor to the beat.

• You are still a wild man after your bath at night, and we cannot contain you.  We usually let you run around upstairs for a little bit to wear yourself out before trying to get you to sleep.  That is usually the time when you go into big brother's room to wreak havoc!   

• You also love playing with Daddy and one of your favorite games is to pretend Daddy is a horse that you love to ride!  

Giddy up, Daddy!

So happy playing with Daddy!  When the horsey stops, you start bouncing to get him to go again!

Big brother likes to ride too!

• You still usually drink a bottle of milk at bedtime to help calm you down and get you to sleep.  

• You know bye-bye and will shut the door on someone and wave and say a form of bye.  

• You can open any door in our house so we have to keep the outside doors locked with the deadbolts.  Our doors have handles instead of knobs which makes it easier for you to reach up and pull them to open. 

You apparently wanted to go outside.

• You do have a little temper when something doesn't go your way and will fall back onto the floor and scream a little.  It is cute for now.  

Oh what a face!

• You love your big brother the best and love playing with him and wrestling with him on the floor!

Wrestling!

Brother kisses are the best!

• You are still just the sweetest little man and love us all almost as much as we love you.  Mommy particularly could sit and hold you and look at your sweet little face for hours.  Of course, you are usually too busy for that!  

2012 Olympics London

We were excited to watch last night's Opening Ceremonies in London.  This is the first games that Evan is really old enough to enjoy watching, and I knew he would love watching the Opening Ceremonies show.  To make it special, we decided to get some yummy Krispy Kreme (if you don't know about Krispy Kreme, I am sorry.  They make the best doughnuts on the planet, but you absolutely must get them when the "Hot" sign is on.  So warm and delicious and melt-in-your-mouth good!) and make our own Olympic rings.  It was cute and yummy too.  I don't know what other people were expecting when they say they were disappointed  in the show.  Every country is different, and their show is supposed to reflect their country, heritage, etc.  I thought this one did a fine job...except maybe the music because they didn't really seem to play a lot of "British" music.  I did like the Mary Poppins reference and the Queen "flying" with James Bond via helicopter and then parachuting down into the stadium.  Ha!  Like an 80 something year old woman is going to ride in a helicopter and go parachuting and walk into the stadium in her therapeutic shoes not even out of breath.  I do think she is an incredible lady to have represented her country with so much dignity for so many years and am glad she got to see another Olympic games in her country during her long reign.  All in all, it was a good show, and we enjoyed watching it together!  Of course, the boys did not stay up to watch Team U.S.A. enter the stadium, but we are rooting for them to bring home lots of gold!

Our view of the games.

Our Olympic "doughnut" rings.

Evan proudly showing off his Olympic rings.

Brody had a front row seat.

Oh and Evan announced tonight that he wanted to be in the Olympics one day.  I asked him what event/sport he wanted to play, and he said volleyball.  I don't know where that came from.  Haha!

GO TEAM U.S.A.!

SUYL: Displaying Our Pictures

Today at Kelly's Korner, they're doing Show Us Your Life:  Displaying Pictures.  This is a perfect link-up for me because I love my family's pictures.  They are quite literally everywhere.  While I don't consider myself a great decorator and just go with what is comfortable for our home for now while our kids are young, I love having pictures of our family hanging all around me.  Here is a little sneak peek into our home and what you will see on the walls:

A big wall in our front/formal living room.  It is supposed to be a formal living space with  high ceilings.  We don't really use it for a formal space yet and it actually serves as an extension to the play area.  The large walls definitely needed something to fill their space.  I love the two square frames showcasing pictures from my two boys' newborn pictures.  The picture in the middle was our first professional photograph of our family of 4 taken at the hospital.

I love this little grouping of 3 photographs, and the frames were a great deal from Michael's.  One each of our two sons' newborn/baby photos and one of them together. 

These are some of our oldest son's school pictures.  I would like to eventually start a large photo gallery wall going up the stairs of all of our kids' school photographs through the years (at least the ones we like).  

Our wonderful professional portrait of our new family of 4.

I love having a few pictures of our extended family showcased on this bookcase in our family room.  I wish we had built-ins on each side of the fireplace for more storage space though. 

I actually want something different on our mantel besides my wedding portrait, but my husband likes it there so for now I allow it to stay.  There are two photo books on either side of more of our sons' professional newborn pictures.  They are amazing!  I also love Evan's little silhouette picture and hope to make or get Brody's done soon.

A little display in the play room of our oldest son's artwork and his last school class picture.  I really want to do a bigger display for more of his artwork. 

This little grouping (I love black frames with black and white pictures) is on our upstairs landing between our two kids' bedrooms.  The large portrait was when our first son was a baby, and the other pictures were from his first "real" trip to the beach. 

A beautiful picture display in our youngest son's nursery.  These are his newborn portraits and a large copy of his birth announcement from the same photographer.

A little photo display in our oldest son's room on his dresser.

Hope you enjoyed the little tour of our home, one picture at a time.   Can you tell I love pictures of my family?