Just Another Day in Paradise

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

It's Summer

I love the summer. Now that Lance has started the whole going to school thing, I appreciate it even more.

It has been extremely hot lately, so we spend a lot of our days inside. We have tried to find ways to enjoy the heat, though.

Remember last summer when we set up a homemade slip-n-slide? This year we did the same thing, only we got a second tarp and made it 50 feet long. Can you say awesome?

Jude was never able to grasp the concept of "turns" and would scurry up to the top and slide right back down, regardless of who was waiting to go next. Stinker.

Bennett!

My boys LOVE the water. They love it so much, I decided to let Cole go down feet first on his tummy about half-way down, just to see what he would do. He wasn't a huge fan. Oh well. Maybe in a few months.

The moms got to be the official "pushers".

Even with it doubled in size from last year, we still developed a muddy puddle at the end. Lance and Jude liked to play in it. Lance even purposely dumped the mud all over himself. He is 100% boy.

Cole liked going on my lap better than by himself, but he couldn't decide if it was fun or not--tolerable, but not worth smiling about.

All three of my boys!

A kiddo train! We were there with the Vedomskes, Elmers and Smiths.

Love the goggles, Lance.

The tarps are held in place by 8-inch metal stakes at the top, so it's not going anywhere. We keep it rolled up and break it out every few days when we need a water-fix. There is even talk about getting a third tarp to extend it even farther. Of course, that idea came about when the husbands were trying it out one evening and kept flying off the end. I guess we'll see.

Now that it's summer, our bathtub sports a nice brown ring, even after I scrub it down. As soon as the boys hop out of the once-clean bathtub, there it is again. A ring. Oh well.

Lance, I think it's time for a hair-cut.

Punk Lance.

Jude wanted his hair spiked, too. This was our best attempt.

Brothers. When they're not getting on each others' last nerve, they really do love each other. (Can you see how brown that water is? Gross.)

Aric (our neighbor) rides to and from the hospital on this scooter that he parks behind their apartment. Jude has claimed it as his own and knows how to open the seat to find the helmet. I walked out of our back door one day and found Jude, helmet in place, riding the scooter, scooter noises and all.

Don't you just want to squeeze him?

Lance has been after me since the beginning of the school year last year to make homemade play dough. We've been trying to cut back our TV time, so in an attempt to get the kids away from the screen, I made a batch.

It was a hit! I think the kids played with it for at least an hour.

Jude was thrilled Mommy let him use a butter knife to cut the dough. He could have cut those pieces for hours if I let him.

Killian made a sun with his orange dough.

Kendall made a fish.

There's Jude with his pieces again.

And Lance made a snake...

...and a scorpion! Great job, Lance!

That's some yummy looking ice cream, Kendall.

Lance and Killian wanted their picture taken with their "ice cream", too.

Yum!

And you know it's summer because by the end of the day, we all feel like this:

He fell asleep like that. He was playing on minute and zonked the next.

I love summer!

Friday, July 13, 2012

Cole is 5 months old!

I can't believe Cole is already 5 months old. It strange how it seems like he was just born, but at the same time I can't really remember what life was like without him.

One night after baths, the boys were hanging out on my bed so I snapped a couple pictures.

Yeah, I know, Cole. They are pretty crazy.

This little boy get smothered with love.

Here are a couple updates on Cole:

He has two teeth! He started teething over a month ago and now has two sharp little chompers on the bottom.

He has learned to roll over both ways--front to back and back to front. In fact, he's learning how to get around a bit and has made it from one side of the room to the other just rolling. The boys and I have started having talks about keeping little things off the floor. Most of the tiny things I find get a quick trip to the trash, so Lance better keep those little marbles and bouncy balls where I can't see them!

He is super smiley and very laid back. He's been our easiest baby by far. He's usually content to sit back and watch the action. He loves to be in his bouncy seat or exer-saucer and he likes the swings at the park. He's very social and will smile at just about anybody. Even though Cole doesn't have to be held to be happy, he does get sad if he's in a room by himself and can't see any of the family.

He's almost as drool-y as Jude was, which is saying a lot. I think Cole is going to be our newest "Drool Monster" as Jude was affectionately called at this age.

Cole is big. He weighed 18 lbs at his 4 month check, so I'm guessing he's close to 20 lbs now. Lance didn't reach the 20 lbs mark until well after his 1st birthday!

He is still waking up in the middle of the night to eat--at least twice. Maybe that's because I haven't started him on solid foods yet. He would probably sleep if I let him cry it out, but it's just easier on my heart to let him nurse for 10 minutes. I guess we'll have to work on that.

Cole does this funny rocking thing when we hold him. He'll be sitting on my lap and suddenly start bouncing up and down. I'm not sure if it's because he's excited or if he wants to just move. Or maybe it's because all the songs I sing to him involve some kind of bouncing. Whatever the reason, it's fun to watch.

He's a cuddly baby. He will hold onto you when you pick him up and kind of settle in. Sweet baby. I love it.

We really can't get enough of our baby Cole. He is such a sweet little guy and makes us laugh every day with his fun personality. I love this stage!

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Uncle Chad came to visit!

The last week in June was special this year because we got to spend it with my brother Chad. He's been living in New York City and then Miami for the past five years while he went to Dental School at Columbia and then began an Orthodontic program in Miami right after graduation. We haven't seen too much of him these past several years, so when we heard he was going to be in Ashburn for a week, the boys and I just had to be there! George wasn't able to come since he started his Residency the day we drove up.

My three boys with their three uncles.

This was the first time Chad got to meet Cole!

While we were up in Ashburn, we got to ~~finally~~ celebrate Jason's 18th Birthday.

He asked for Paula Deen's Banana Pudding for his cake. If you've never had this, it is A-MAZ-ING.

And of course it wouldn't be a visit with Chad without haircuts! Chad cuts Jason's and Stephen's hair for them whenever he's in town, so I thought Lance should get in on the free-haircut action!

It turned out great!

One day while we were up there, we went to the park with Tyler and Mason. It's a great park that has sections for each age group.

Jude and Mason had a good time on the bouncy bus.

Cole spent most of the time in a swing. Thanks, Aunt Amy!

And Lance had to test out his monkey skills as usual. I asked him if he remembered coming to this park when he was little. He and I lived with my mom in Ashburn for a couple years when he was 1 until he just turned 3 and we frequented this park. He said he didn't remember, but I sure do!

Here's a small glimpse down memory lane:

Lance was just barely one year old when this picture was taken.

Lance on the bouncy bus with Jason and Stephen. Look how little they were!

Sweet baby. Oh Lance... this was a fun age.

Anyway, back to present. While we were at the park, Mason decided he wanted to play in the little creek that was there and ran off with Jude close behind. I leisurely got Cole and the stroller and headed over with Amy, only to hear my name being yelled by Tyler. I walk around the corner and see a large port-a-potty and Tyler standing outside. Suddenly the door opens and I see this bright, shiny naked bottom come streaking out. Jude apparently thought he needed to use the bathroom and stripped himself bare, diaper and all. I had to laugh.

Look at those white biscuits!

Mason, meanwhile, stayed occupied in the water.

I did finally manage to get a diaper on Jude. I would have taken another picture of him, but families were walking past and I probably looked like a terrible parent, so his naked time was cut short.

Back at my mom's house, we spent a few days helping her clear out some of the garage. It was fun to open boxes and go through some old things from when we were little.

Cole really liked Grandma's old necklaces. I remember sitting in Church on her lap and playing with these beads. And what do you know? They're actually back in style! Laura even adopted a set to wear.

Oh my goodness. This is our Family Home Evening apron we used when we were growing up. Each pocket had a picture that represented a song, so when it was our turn to pick a song, we got to reach into the pocket of our choice. Can you guess what songs go with those four pictures? Aunt Cherryl made it for our family years and years ago. And now it's mine!

This picture is very special. My mom and dad finger-painted it together on their first date at BYU.

This is the poem my dad wrote that is in the bottom corner. Love it!

The top choice of activities for the boys was going to the pool. We only got to go one day and it was COLD from the wind that was blowing, but it was still fun to be there with Chad and Stephen.

Getting some sun.

That pavement felt nice in the sun.

Jude was loving the audience.

Chad braved the cold water to play with Jude. That's love! (Notice how the pool is completely empty?)

Chad and Jude played a trick on Lance as pay-back when Lance splashed Uncle Chad. Lance didn't think it was very funny.

And in between all these activities, we just hung out. One day we drove about 30 minutes to have lunch at Cafe Rio. Yum! Chad and I got to go to the gym together twice, thanks to Laura and her passes (she works at Lifetime and got us in for free!). Score!

While cleaning out the garage, Mom found a couple air mattresses that she had the boys test out to make sure they were sound. We found the one with a hole and it turned into the greatest toy ever! They spent hours jumping on it until it was flat, only to fill it up and start all over again.

Even Cole got into the action. Lance thought it was great to jump on the mattress and send Cole into the air. Cole thought it was pretty fun, too.

Snuggle time with Uncle Jason.

One night we got frozen yogurt from the local Zinga together. It was great! Look, Mom with her six kids.

We sure loved being with Uncle Chad! It was a fun week. We'll get to see him next when we all go to Florida in August. I can't wait!

Sunday, July 8, 2012

There were boys in the bed and the little one said...

Lance and Jude can't get enough of Cole and I love it! Jude is constantly loving him and Lance will carry Cole around with him or set him on the couch next to him while he's watching TV. It is very cute to watch.

I was working on the computer the other day and Jude hopped into the pack-n-play with Cole while he was supposed to be sleeping. It reminded me of a picture I took almost exactly two years ago:

Yep, that's Lance with 5-month-old Jude.

While Lance and Jude are currently struggling to fully appreciate each other during their many interactions throughout the day, there is one thing they can both agree on: they both love, love love baby Cole.