Picture People

The Picture People frequently sends coupons for free photos, so the boys and I enjoy going to the mall to take advantage of the offer. Well, "enjoy" is probably not the right word since getting pictures of my boys is generally a nightmare that involves much chaos and physical exertion and emotional angst. But I put myself through it anyway because it's worth it in the end (and somehow, the photographers always manage to get some cute shots of the boys despite their uncooperativeness).

Getting the Hang of It

(Disclaimer: this post is about potty training. A topic really only interesting to mothers of toddlers/preschoolers. And really, it's not even all that interesting to us but for some reason it's like a rule of motherhood to discuss it. So if you'd like to skip this post all together, mother or not, I totally understand).

So I finally told Noah that enough was enough and for crying out loud it was time to wear underpants. Then I lied and told him the store was all out of daytime pullups, so my hands are tied. Anyway, so we've been officially and resolutely potty training since Tuesday and it's going very well, I'm happy to report. I think it might even be completed before Noah's 4th birthday in two weeks. If so, you can bet that if anyone asks how old he was when he was potty trained, I will not hesitate to answer that he was three.

We have even gone on a couple of successful outings. Sure, one was to the pool where, for all I know, Noah was peeing his pants like crazy, but the other involved two 20 minute car rides and a good 45 minutes in a store, thank you very much.

Today was a particularly exciting milestone because Noah did not have a single accident! Yay!! Of course, I still found myself cleaning up pee. But that was more due to an, ahem, equipment malfunction and not because Noah didn't make it to the potty in time. Potty training little boys can be tricky.

This Morning I Stepped on a Frog

So while I was out running this morning I stepped on a frog that was sitting in the middle of the sidewalk. I noticed it a split second too late. Ew!! I can still feel it in the heel of my foot.


This is what the poor froggie must have looked like right before my shoe came down on it.

Surprisingly, they squash rather easily. Ew, ew, ew.



This is actually not my first altercation with an animal while out running. (As a side note, many of you are likely astonished that I have now twice used the phrase "out running" so willy-nilly, like it's just a part of my normal existence. But I will have you know that for the past couple of months now it IS a part of my normal existence. Shocking, I know, but I have been running faithfully 3-4 times a week. I'm up to doing between 3 and 4 miles. Feel free to be proud of me. I'm pretty proud of myself. And credit must be given to my marathon-superstar-running-partner/trainer Jamie).

Anyway, so back to my animal altercation. A couple of weeks ago I was running along when all of a sudden I heard this loud swooshing in my ear. I turned my head and a bird was right there, trying to land on my ponytail! The stupid thing tried landing on me one more time before it realized that I was moving (wildly and embarassingly at this point) and was not, in fact, a tree. Finally it figured things out and opted for the more stationary lamp post.

So apparantly I need to watch out for little creatures.

This Will Make You Happy...

...and if it doesn't then I simply can't help you.

This is perhaps the happiest video I have ever seen.

Noah, Sam and I started joining in when we were watching it and now we're all very out of breath. But very happy. I think I'm going to watch it every day.

Enjoy!

Sam's Birthday Party

(I erased out our phone number and the name of our community, in case you're wondering why the invite looks a little weird...)

Last Saturday we had a birthday party for Sam at our neighborhood pool. We had lots of friends there, as well as two of Ben's brothers and their families. Later that evening we had a family pizza party and opened presents. We had such a great time celebrating our little Nut's two years.

Here are TONS of pictures from the pool party (thanks to my niece Emily, the designated camera lady).

Playing at the pool:

Reacting to the big bucket dumping out:

Cousins Jack, Aaron, James, Daniel and Colin

Cousin Laney

Cousin CharleyNoah, taking the party very seriously:
A play-by-play of the birthday singing and cupcake eating:

Noah, carefully eating his cupcake

At home, after the party - the Birthday Boy enjoying his balloons:

Let's Pretend it's July 12 (Sam's 2nd Birthday)

Dear Sam,

This was you exactly two years ago, when you were ten days old.

I can't believe how much you have grown since then. Although I still think of you as my baby (and probably always will), I have to admit that you are really beyond the baby stage. The day before your birthday this year, the fact that you were becoming a little boy suddenly hit me and I promptly went out and bought you a couple of rompers (which you look adorable in, of course). Just my attempt to keep you as a baby for a little bit longer. You walk and run and try to jump (which is hilarious because you think you are jumping and your knees bend and you shoot yourself up, but your feet never leave the ground). You are talking more and more every day. You are obsessed with trains and you make the cutest little train sounds I've ever heard ("Choo choooooooooooooo! Ch ch ch ch ch..."). You try to hold as many as you can in your hands at once and then get very mad when one of them drops.

There are lots of things, though, that haven't changed at all in the last two years. Your dimples still solicit comments from just about everybody. You still have the same happy demeaner that you were born with. You are an easy-going kid (with the exception of an occassional two-year-old moment, generally involving a dropped train or my refusal to put soda in your sippy cup). You are still my sweet cuddle-bug, nestling your little head into my collar bone when you wake up from your naps.

Here are our first moments together:

And with your daddy and your big brother:

I'm so happy that you are my son. You make my life brighter. Happy Birthday, little Nut!

I love you,

Mama

Two Months Later...

Here are a bunch of pictures that I never posted from our trip to CA in May. The boys and I went out about a week before my brother's wedding and stayed a few days after.

On one of our daily walks to see the horses:


With cousins, visiting and feeding the horses (which was very exciting for Noah):




Noah and Alex playing in the pool:
Uncle Tom with Noah and Sam:

The three baby cousins: Alex, Adam and Sam

Me and my Grandma (love you, Grandma!):