Loving It

Sometimes, when I look at photos of the boys when they were younger, I get sad at how quickly the past few years have flown by. I miss how little they used to be, their little fingers and toes, I miss the excitement of all their "firsts." But then, I see how much easier life gets as they grow and learn, and it's so easy to embrace the change and love their eagerness to please. I've always tried to give them little "jobs" while I'm making dinner. Usually, these "jobs" involved playing with dried beans, stacking measuring cups or playing in a soapy sink. Recently, however, they have truly begun helping me! Sure, I still have to be a little creative about enlisting their assistance, but it's been fun for them and so very nice for me. Here, they're brushing asparagus with olive oil, a task they took seriously enough to give me enough time to trim and season the chicken for supper. How great is that?

Cheese!

Apparently, completely forced smiles are the newest rage with my silly boys. Of course, I wasn't too thrilled to find that my little Dex had switched from paper to torso as canvas of choice... good thing it was bath night!

Boots!

Dexter- top and Jaxon- bottom, showing off their cool boots (Dex is also showing how well he can use kleenex and Jax is, as always, proud of his climbing abilities). The boys would wear these everyday, if I let them! Last week, we had our first 80 degree day and, wouldn't you know, the boys insisted on wearing their boots to the playground. Luckily, they've both readily accepted the idea (actually, they came up with it) of wearing one of each boot. This has been a lifesaver, as far as eliminating conflict over who wears which pair. If only all toys came in pairs!!

Missing Daddy

With D.R. working evenings two weeks ago and days last week, the boys have been able to spend some really great time with him. Today is the start of a 12-day stretch of no days off and long, long shifts at work. You'd think we'd be used to the ups and downs of a resident's schedule, but it never gets easier... we just learn to really love the time that we do get together as a family.

This morning, we took the boys to a new park, with the intent of having a picnic lunch and spending a long morning outside. Of course, as luck would have it, we were far-underdressed for the chilly morning and, so, we moved our picnic from the grass to the back of the mini-van. Unexpected, yes... but, oh-so-much fun. The boys had a blast playing in the back of the car and I loved being able to share such an intimate space with my little family. Luckily, we were able to get a good hour of playing in before we transitioned to the warm vehicle. The highlight of the morning had to be when the boys and their daddy decided to go into the "forest" to search for tigers, snakes, trolls and Jaxon's all-time favorite made-up character, the snow princess (he once saw a magazine ad for women's deoderant with a pretty girl all dressed in white fur... he named her the snow princess and still talks about her!). As luck would have it, they apparently found several tigers and heard, but never actually saw, some very large snakes (which Dexter calls, "swacks"). They had me giggling when, during our mini-van picnic, they insisted that tigers were driving all the passing cars. Hmm...

Anyway, here are a few Daddy highlights from the past few weeks...

On this afternoon, I sent the boys out with D.R. to play together on the park. Where did I find them? Doing a "project" with Daddy. He had them raking leaves and shoveling sand from around the parking lot near our apartment. Too funny! The boys loved helping Daddy with such a big task! Above, Dex is raking while Jaxon looks for treasures among the pile of discarded furniture (lovely) near the dumpster.

Jaxon insisted this old chair was his "computer," and proceeded to work, quite seriously, on a project of his own. Here, Jaxon gets a turn with the rake.After running in front of a swing a few days earlier, Dexter proudly shows off the owie under his eye.Aahh, music. The boys bang away with Daddy as their number one fan.This is the BEST way to get dinner ready... far better than trying to juggle the boys and food prep! Oh, if only D.R. were home every evening!! :)Of course, playing cars is always better when Daddy's involved... :)

Funniest comment of the day

So... earlier this week, I spent some time with my friend Ang, shopping for baby girl clothes. She's due in September with her second little girl, so the two of us had a blast looking at adorable little dresses and newborn clothes.

Of course, completely fascinated with all things "baby," Jaxon has started wearing two of the baby dresses almost every single day. I don't let him leave the house in them, or sleep in them, though he frequently requests to do both. But, I don't discourage him when he asks to wear the baby's clothes.

Tonight, however, when D.R. got home and he found Jaxon prancing around in his little dress and asking for painted toe-nails a good thirty minutes past bedtime, he told Jaxon it was time to take off the dress and put on his jammies. This was part of the conversation that had me in giggles...

"Jaxon, what are you wearing?"

"It's my dress, Daddy!"

"No, Jaxon. It's the baby's dress and it's time to put your jammies on."

"No, Daddy! No jammies! I look pretty in MY dress!"

It's hard to argue with that!

Tid-bits

Why I love student housing...

While outside the other day, the boys and I saw a group of older boys (8-11) playing football. Of course, Dex and Jax were completely intrigued by the game and ran over as fast as I could. I shouted after them that it was a "big boy" game and that they needed to watch. But, before I could catch up to them, I heard one of the older boys shout, "I get Dexter on my team!" Immediately, another one of the boys shouted, "I get Jaxon on my team!" And, so, I sat on a picnic table watching my boys play their first game of "football." It was precious and just a reminder of how lucky we are to be living amidst so many great families.

Down the elephant hole...

A few weeks ago, after extensively searching for some beloved toy the boys wanted, D.R. jokingly said, "I guess it fell down the elephant hole!" Amazingly, the boys accepted this as completely plausible and seemed fine with the fact that we wouldn't be finding this toy. Of course, ever since then, when something is missing, I will frequently hear one of the boys say, "Where's my _________?" Only to be followed by the other one saying, "Down the elephant hole!"

Living in an apartment, we frequently hear noises from the pipes of our neighbors whenever water is turned on or off. The boys will almost always perk up their ears and whisper, "What's that?" Last week, I told the boys it was probably an elephant. Ever since, they frequently refer to the elephant who lives in our kitchen and will giggle with pleasure everytime they hear the neighbors' pipes... convinced they're hearing the elephant making noises. Too cute.

Spa Day... Take Two

Jaxon and Daddy...

We had our second ever spa day with the boys this morning. Last month, we decided to start trying to cut their hair at home and created a nice little set-up, with a special DVD checked out form the library (yay, Babar!) and a very brave Daddy, who was willing to do the honors. D.R. did a fantastic job cutting their hair and the boys thought the whole affair was pretty fun. So, this morning, we attempted another one. The boys were a bit more wiggly today, but it was still a lot of fun. Above are some pre-haircut shots. I'll have to post photos of the new haircuts sometime soon. In the photos, Jaxon has the tummy full of stickers and Dexter's in the orange t-shirt. I think we have a new family tradition!

Odds and Ends

There is no rhyme or reason to this post, other than the fact that I have photos I wanted to post and I am trying desperately to get up-to-date!!! The above shot is with T and her sis. The boys were thrilled to have the visitors and I actually got four people with eyes (mostly... Jaxon) open and smiling. yay!! This is a rare occurence with the boys!
One of our projects last month involved melting down the tiny crayons floating around our house. Somehow, I decided that the madeleine mold would be the most appropriate tool to use... hmm... so, for about 10 minutes (until the boys broke them into little pieces... what fun!)... we had shell-shaped crayons. In their defense, I gave the boys the crayons straight out of the freezer and they were VERY fragile. I know this is a silly photo, but I get such a kick out of seeing the boys eat instant pad thai. Jaxon INSISTS on eating it straight out of the box, and luckily, Dexter doesn't seem to mind eating his out of a bowl. Given the boys' dietary restrictions, I guess this is our version of mac n' cheese. :)

Show me your big blues!

Still about a month behind... one of these days I'll catch up! Yesterday, after trying to get one of the boys to listen to me (I think it was Jaxon), I finally said, "I need you to show me your big blues!" He smiled, and pointed to his eyes... and then FINALLY listened to what I was trying to tell him. I love it that the boys are picking up on these subtle language cues.


I also have to laugh, because a few days ago, Dexter told me he wanted to go play in the meadow (referring to the field behind our place). I had to giggle, because I don't think I've EVER said the word meadow... except, perhaps, when reading a book.


Anyway, these are pics from a morning out with T. The boys were actually pretty sick at the time, but being outdoors truly made them feel better! The top three photos are of Jaxon and the bottom two are of Dex. Boy, are we LOVING this warmer weather... can I stress that enough? The cutest is when the boys say, "No coats? No hats? No sweaters?" before going outside, these days. They're so pleased to be able to skip all the bundling! Me too!

** Yes, Sarah, I did knit the sweaters!! :) Glad you like them!

A downside to warmer weather?

A rainy day art project... Jax left, Dex right


Somehow, a dried clay handprint truned into an excuse to get out the paints. SO fun to watch the boys get creative... Dex left, Jax right.

We are loving the warmer weather and more time spent outside, it's true. However, I've noticed that the artwork on our walls hasn't been changing quite as freqently. Hmm.... is this a downside to the warmer weather? I guess the trade-off is worth it. We can always keep a stockpile of project ideas for rainy days!

I wish I had had my camera outside this afternoon. The boys were playing with a few of the big boys (I'm guessing they're about 7 or 8), who are SO sweet to take Dex and Jax under their wing when they see them outside. The older kids had convinced my boys that the only way to get water out of a garden hose was to squeeze the hose as hard as you could. The boys would grab the hose and SQUEEEEZE until their faces turned red, then, the older boys would quickly turn on the water and Dexter and Jaxon would go crazy... completely convinced that their huge two-year-old muscles managed to make water come out of the hose. It was pretty cute.

I think it's going to be a great summer.

For what I'm thankful...

As usual, these photos are from about a month ago, when the boys were so sick. I think they survived on dry cereal and rice cakes for that entire time... so here they are, cuddling with their daddy and enjoying a cereal picnic in the living room.

My three handsome men treated me to quite the Mother's Day, today! The plan was to let me sleep in, a bit, which was SO thoughtful of D.R.... However, the boys thought it would be even better to cuddle WITH Mommy while she was sleeping in, so it was more like resting in... with little cuddle bugs to keep me entertained. :)

Then, to add to my delight, D.R. took the boys, still in their jammies, on a mission to buy Mommy her favorite coffee drink (decaf, of course) and a scone. Of course, the boys were adament that sample my yummy drink (yes, they're both still huge coffee fanatics... what goofy boys). While the guys were gone, I got to enjoy an unrushed shower, which is truly a gift, indeed!

After church, which involved two little boys sitting quietly for what could be there new personal record (sure, it's only about 10 minutes at the end of the service and mostly involves listening to or singing along to the great music... but, it is definitely a step in the right direction!), we enjoyed a lunch out and an afternoon at the Mall of America. I think the highlight of the afternoon involved both boys walking so nicely, one on each of my hands, with D.R. pushing the stroller beside us. That feeling, that sensation of knowing we were a family, THAT was the best gift... and truly a rarity, these days, with D.R.'s demanding work schedule. THAT made my day.

We finished off the evening with friends. Mike and Allison grilled outside, so we enjoyed great food and conversation. Of course, seeing as the boys had missed naptime during our afternoon excursion, we had a few dicey moments, but all in all, it was a fantastic evening and it felt so good to be able to visit with good friends and watch the boys play. It's getting to the point where adults are truly outnumbered by children at these get-togethers. There were four couples and 10 children (with two on the way!), so there was plenty of entertainment!!

An added surprise was that D.R. and two of his friends most kindly decided to treat their wives to a mom's night out. So, the three of us gals will be enjoying dinner out next week, while the daddies watch all the munchkins.

Icing on the cake? D.R. is working evenings this week, which means no moonlighting and days home with me and the boys. Truly a dream come true for this mom!!

Ring Around the Rosie

From early on, one of Jaxon's favorite tricks was to jump in the air, throw both legs in front of him and land smack on his bootie. It was absolutely hilarious! Of course, as he's grown taller, there's been less and less WWF style jumping occuring in the house (the landing has got be a little rough!). Anyway, the other night...well, more accurately, about a month ago... we caught him doing his token jump at the end of Ring Around the Rosie. I grabbed the camera as quick as could be, but wasn't able to catch him in the act again. I did, however, capture some pretty cute moments for both boys.

Squelch, Squerch! Squelch, Squerch!

Anyone who knows me well knows that I rarely shy away from an adventure with the boys simply because it will be messy. We routinely cover the kitchen floor in butcher paper and tempera paint, it's not unusual to find our living room rug scattered with dried beans and buttons, playdough in the carpet is just part of the routine (good thing I'm not afraid of cleaning it up!), and of course, I kitchen floor full of soapy water doesn't bother me in the least. Today, however, I think we set a new standard for MESSY FUN.

With D.R. gone so much these days, I find myself becoming more and more tolerant of messy distractions for the boys. It's a way for me to get things done while enjoying the giggles and joy that come from the boys getting to play by themselves. Tonight, I managed to clean up from dinner while the boys dove into a bowl full of miracle bubbles. I had purchased a set of wands and bubble blowing devices a few weeks ago with the intent to save it for a hot summer day (OUTSIDE), but since I needed a good 20 minutes to wash dishes and put food away, this seemed as good a night as any to pull them out. Of course, once again, I found a big bubbly mess in my kitchen (at least the boys are really good about containing the mess to a designated area!) and two boys covered in sticky bubbles.

So, what's a mom to do? Well, since we were a good 45 minutes away from bathtime, I put the boys in some old clothes and rain boots and we went outside for what I thought would be a good rinsing of their sticky little paws. It's been raining all afternoon and what better way to entertain a couple of two-year-old boys than in the rain, right? Despite the fact that we found ourselves surrounded by about half a dozen gorgeous rain puddles that would be perfect for splashing in, the boys managed to find the only ooey, gooey mud puddle within sight and sploshed around for a good 20 minutes.

I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard! There was marching in the mud, there were hand prints in the mud, there was slipping and sliding and pushing each other around in the mud. But, mostly, there were the squeals of delight that make parenting so rewarding for me. This was clearly absolute heaven for these two little boys and it just cracked me up to watch them play. I wish (I so wish) I would have brought my camera outside. Of course, anytime someone would walk by, the boys would have to shout a big hello and announce that they were playing in the mud (as though that weren't obvious enough!). By the time I convinced them to head back home, they were completely covered from head to toe in thick, oozy mud (as is written in one of their all-time favorite books, Going on a Bear Hunt).

Sure, I had to fully strip them before allowing them to enter our apartment building, and there's the load of laundry I'm doing when I'd prefer to be putting my feet up, and the bathtub that had to be rinsed three times to get rid of all the mud, but it was so completely worth it.

Twin Talks

Okay, so napping has been hit or miss, these days. Some days, the boys crash... and, others, like today, are just a giant playtime for the boys to galavant unsupervised in their room. Today, I heard the following conversation, which cracked me up.

Jaxon: "Help me, Da Da!"

Dexter: "No, Ja Ja! I playing cars!"

Jaxon: "PLEASE! Help me, Da Da!"

Dexter: "No, Ja Ja!"

Silence... followed by a scream from Dexter.

Dexter: "No bite me, Ja Ja!"

Jaxon: "Come back, Da Da!"

Dexter: "I open door!"

Jaxon: "No! Come back, Da Da!"

Dexter: "No, Ja Ja! I no come back!"

... of course, 30 seconds later, they were giggling and running around the room together, again. As usual, I'm torn between giggling at these primitive conversations and stomping in to reprimand them for not sleeping. Decisions, decisions...

During bathtime tonight, they also decided that they didn't want Mom to wash their hair. However, they were tickled pink with the idea of rinsing each other's hair out. So weird, since way less water gets in their eyes when I do it!!

A bit late...

Once again, the boys are having quiet time and I'm going to quickly post before I grab a quick nap of my own! This is a little montage of a few of the highlights of our trip to see my folks in March (yes, I'm very far behind!).

I remember the boys calming so quickly in that baby buggy when they were infants. Now, as 2-year-olds, they can't get enough of pushing each other around in it. Too funny.

Of course, as always, their favorite place to hang out is by the piano, where my parents are equipped with guitars, drums and, sometimes, the hammered dulcimer. The boys love this music corner and were so happy when Mimi sat down to sing/play with them. Dexter is singing away to his heart's content and Jaxon is happily providing a beat for the tune.

Lastly, is a clip of the boys acting quite silly (and loud) in the giant tub downstairs. I had been busy doing laundry when I turned around and both boys were gone. Where did I find them? Giggling away in the tub, as though they were the cleverest of boys for having hopped in their fully-clothed. Luckily, I had my camera close by. Now, if only there had been two sharks!

Catch-Up

I hope this isn't going to be a trend!! There are so many things I want to be posting about, so many things I want to remember... but it seems I have less and less time, these days! Yikes. What are things going to be like when this baby arrives?!

The boys went almost two weeks without napping, which meant some VERY long days for Mom! Despite their insistance that they should basically play all day long, I have FINALLY been able to instill a "quiet time" in the afternoon, which means both boys are in their room and I have a chance to take a quick nap. Pregnancy is catching up to me, and I'm finding that it's harder and harder to keep up with the boys. Of course, since I'm using this time to nap, it means that things like email/phone calls/blogging, etc. have taken a back burner to, well... life.

This is a video from well over a month ago, but I just have to share it. One of the drawbacks of D.R.'s schedule is his limited time with the boys. He does such a fabulous job of making the most of the time he does have with them and the boys love the physical play that they get from Daddy. It's been hard on both boys when they go several days without seeing D.R., but it's encouraging to see how quickly the relationship can be restored each and everytime.

D.R. had a wonderful long week-end with us and I loved every second of it. We enjoyed an excursion to a local gluten-free bakery wiht its very own play kitchen for the boys. We went to a model train shop and watched the boys engage in the most adorable train play. There were walks outside and forts inside... it went far-too quickly and we're, once again, getting used to the reality of D.R.'s busy work schedule.

The boys also had another appointment with their GI last week. We went through cystic fibrosis testing and are going to be running several other tests in the weeks to come. I haven't heard anything from the CF test, yet, but I'm assuming things are fine, since the initial screening came back negative.

The boys are as funny and as busy as ever. Tonight, bedtime was delayed as they chased each other around their bedroom trying to "eat" each other. I have no idea what that meant, except that I could hear them shouting and laughing, and then, every once in a while, Dexter would shout, "No eat me, Ja-Ja!" Inevitably, everytime I walked upstairs to check on them, they would quickly jump into their beds and pretend to be asleep. I guess you could say these antics are equally entertaining as they are exasperating. :)