Picture Perfect Day

Part two of my mission to get a picture of my 2 year-old. My mom was coming back to town today, so I scheduled an appointment at Kiddie Kandids (where I should have gone in the first place. I have yet to have a bad experience there - aside from spending too much money!) We talked up picture taking all weekend, and saying "cheese" hoping to prepare Logan. When we first got there, he started to shy away, but the photographer was great and he became a ham! It was a completely pleasant experience. These are the proofs that we get on the CD, so they are unedited and uncropped, but you get the idea. I may be a little biased, but I have two very photogenic boys!

I still didn't really get the "belly shot" that I wanted, but they were wearing down by this point. I would love to go back to the photographer that took my Logan belly shots, but I so can NOT afford that. But I did get the picture that I wanted and I didn't walk out of there in tears! Mission accomplished.

Picture Nightmare

Last Thursday, Noah, Logan, Grandma and Mommy loaded up and headed to the mall to try and get pictures for Logan turning 2. I also had hopes of getting a shot of the brothers together, and then maybe a shot of the boys with my growing baby belly. When we arrived, we lucked out because someone had just cancelled, so we were in! Unfortunatley, the luck ran out right there.

Logan was terrified of the photographer. I must say mommy was a little creeped out too. He had no personality and no creativity either. Isn't that his job when taking pictures of children? So we opted to let Noah go first to try and show Logan how it was done. Noah posed like a pro, as usual. Then I joined in to try and ease Logan in to it. He still clung to me. After some time, another photographer stuck her head in and told the guy our time was up, that we were done. I didn't have a single shot of Logan by himself.

We loaded up the stroller and went up to the food court to enjoy some Chick-fil-A. The highlight of the afternoon. Then I went back down to see if there was even 1 picture worth buying. They tried hard to present them all framed and ready to walk out the door. I wasn't convinced. I didn't even have a picture of my 2 year old! So needless to say, I walked out of there with my free 8X10 - of NOAH!!! He does take a great picture, though, don't you think?

What possessed me to try something new? We had never been there before, and I'm not sure I'll be going back anytime soon. Kiddie Kandids, here we come.

Tonight.....We Bowl!

And Mommy was the "pin girl." Great-grandma Ruth, I was thinking of you, wishing I was getting 10 cents a pin (Matt's grandma had a job setting up the pins at the bowling alley!). For as long as we bowled, I could have made some money! Ha ha. Here are my bowlers:

We even had an audience!
Noah said, "These are our guests."

At first, I was beginning to question my choice of birthday presents for Logan. I didn't think ahead that I would be the one setting up the pins, over and over and over and over again. They are very sensitive. As I was setting them up, Noah kept saying, "Mommy, I love you." And when I would knock them over while setting them up, he would say, "It's ok Mommy, you are doing a great job." Then, we had some issues with who was going first, and how to take turns. Once we got past all of that, we had a great time bowling strikes and spares. My "Cool Rider" even showed up at the alley before the night was over! "Who's that guy?" Daddy! "Where did he come from?" Logan said, "Daddy at work, play tumpet."

Check out this form!

I Know I'm Not Supposed to Compare.....

But I looked back to see where Noah was at 2. He weighed 27 lbs. (about the same as Logan) and was 33 1/4" tall (2 inches shorter!) I guess Noah better start eating his Wheaties and some spinach, or Logan's gonna catch up to him soon!

2 Year Check Up

We had a visit to Dr. Addy today for Logan's 2 year check up. His stats were as follows:

Height - 35 3/4 inches (75-90%)

Weight - 27.2 pounds (50%)

Tall and skinny, just like his daddy. I noticed on Noah's growth chart in his room that Logan is 3/4" taller at 2 than Noah was at 2 1/2. I'll have to go back to the baby book to see what Noah was at 2 in comparison. Logan's weight curve has actually come up from 25-50. Everything else checked out perfectly - he's doing great! He only had to get one shot this time, and won't have to have anymore shots until 4. Well, except for a flu shot this fall.

Dr. Addy confirmed what we already knew: perfect and too stinkin' cute!

Next Summer Noah.....

We are teaching you to ski!

More From the Party on Papa's Boat

We spent the weekend of Logan's birthday at Lake LBJ with some friends and family. We had lots of fun swimming, jumping in the water, tubing, skiing, eating, and hanging out together. The weather was great, the water was beautiful, and it was not crowded at all! Here are some of the fun pictures from the weekend.

Getting ready to blow out the candles....and drool on the cake!
A big jump off the back of Papa's boat. A big "jump" because in May, he cried when I took him in the water.

A big cannonball from Noah.

Noah takes to the tube ALL BY HIMSELF!

Matt takes a ride on the tube with Katelyn and Lauren. Who says he's not ready to have a girl?!

Helping Papa drive the boat. He was actually trying to fall asleep.

Ready to head out for some fun on the water.

Are we really ready for this? The daddies were on the golf course.

Face it, we are SUPERMOMS!

Daddy and his boys.

The handsome big brother. Loves to be at the lake.

Daddy and the birthday boy.

Happy 2nd Birthday Sweet Logan!

My little man turned 2 on Saturday.

August 16, 2006

August 16, 2008

Some things about my little man at 2:

He wants to be just like his big brother.

His vocabulary amazes me everyday.

He loves to play bowling, and will use anything for bowling pins (including his monster trucks).

He's turning into a little fish. At the beginning of the summer he wanted nothing to do with the water.

He loves to sing. Anything from Wiggles, to Barney, to Bob and Larry, to the ABC's.

He's already learning some of his letters and the sounds they make. (Thanks to Noah)

I love how every night he wants to read My Dad! and piles on Matt at the end of the story for the Big Bear Hug!

I can't wait to see what the next year brings as he experiences pre-school, a new baby sister, and moving into the same room as Noah. At the same time, I can wait. I don't want him to grow up.

A Much Needed Smile

This just makes me laugh. This has become an after-bath ritual. After a wild and crazy horsie ride with daddy, they run up and down the hall from Noah's room to Mommy's bathroom. Lately, they have been laying down on the bathmat. Tonight, they were "International Super-Spies" searching for the 3 missing containers (Backyardigans). I love my boys!

Monkey Man

Yesterday, I was sitting at the computer and Noah was playing an Elmo game. From out of the bathroom I hear "uh-oh Mommy." I go into the bathroom to find Logan sitting in the sink. First reaction - take a picture. Then I took him down, he proceeded to do it again. And again. This time I took a picture of the climb. Then I told him no more and he cried.

And somehow, he hasn't figured out that he could easily climb out of the crib. Let's hope it stays that way. At least for another month?!

Quote of the Night

After Concert of Praise, we headed over to Shake's for ice cream. It has become a yearly tradition. Sitting out under the trees, there is a big tree that is good for climbing. As it got darker, I asked Noah not to climb it. Later he told Logan:

N: Logan, you can't climb the tree. It's too dangerous. Only for me.

HCBC Concert of Praise

Last night was the Concert of Praise at our church. It's the wrap up to the summer of the Great Adventure. It is a massive party. This year it was so big that they had one at our church and one on the east side in Pflugerville. They had webcams and talked to the other party live! It was an incredible night. Through all of the Backyard Bible Clubs, Summerfest, and GO Trips, over 5,000 people (adults and children) accepted Christ this summer. Also, over 10,000 people attended the Summerfests that were held around Austin. We missed Summerfest this year because we were in New Orleans. Normally, Matt is playing with the 70's band there. It was a rockin' party last night. I didn't take too many pictures because I was too busy singing, dancing, and praising! Here are a few:

Our Favorite Trumpet Player!
The kids were having a blast dancing in the aisles.

Fishing With Grandma

On Saturday, the boys and I headed up to Lake LBJ to hang out with some of my family. The boys enjoyed riding in the boat and watching the big boys ski, tube, and wake board. Of course, Logan had fun throwing the pecans into the water and trying to avoid the splashing waves. He helped Grandma reel in the fish that was already on the line. They caught two more fish. By the time I got the camera, the fish stopped biting, so I didn't get any pictures of Logan with the "fishies."

I'll have another chance next weekend. We are headed back to the Cope's house for the weekend to celebrate Logan's 2nd birthday! Can't believe he is already turning 2!

24 Weeks

At 24 weeks, I am measuring 24 weeks, which surprises me because I feel HUGE. I gained 5.5 pounds in the last 4 weeks. I blame it on New Orleans food and biengets. My blood pressure was 120/72. Baby girl's heartrate was 162. Way up from last visit, she must have been running a marathon. Maybe training for the olympics! :) I go back on September 3rd for the wonderful 28 wk glucose test. But while I sit there for the hour after drinking the yummy orange stuff, I get to have another sonogram! Yippee! We will get some more pictures of this little one. Any way to look at the right side of her face and see if she has "the" dimple?

Side Note: When you ask Logan what is in Mommy's tummy, he now says "baby sister!"

There's Something About August.......

.......That brings visits to the ER. August '05 - Round Rock ER, Noah fell on our tile step, hit his hemangioma on his cheek and split it open. August '07 - Logan's Birthday. Noah bumped into mommy while holding a bowling ball. He fell on the ball and split his chin. Seton NW ER - 5 stitches in his chin:

August 6, 2008 - The culprit: the dishwasher door. The victim: Noah's eye. My foot was involved too. We had just finished dinner, Matt left for church for Worship Team rehearsal, I was getting ready to do the dishes, and Noah and Logan were playing basketball in the living room. Noah was practicing slam dunks, and wanted to do a super duper dunk....with a running start. The plan: to start at the pantry door, run through the kitchen, around the corner into the living room, and slam dunk! On his was to the pantry door, running at full speed, rounding the corner, he caught the heel of my foot (just barely), and flew through the air, right into the open dishwasher door. I'll never forget the sound of him hitting. He immediately grabbed his face and started to cry. I could only imagine what I would find when I turned him over. The first words out of his mouth, "Mommy, you hurt me." All fear and panic set in, what to do. I carried him to the couch with a paper towel to stop the bleeding. We tried to put the spiderman icepack on it, but that wasn't working. I called Ryan, the ER doc. Do we go? Do we not. Then I tried to call Matt. Dial the cell phone. It's ringing......upstairs in our bedroom. Ugh. So I started to call anyone that I knew that would also be at the rehearsal, got ahold of Matt, and told him I was taking Noah to the ER. He didn't want to go, he only wanted to play. By the time I gathered up everything and everybody, got us all strapped into the car, and got to the ER, Matt was already there! The result: 2 stitches in his eyebrow, some superglue on the cut below his eye, and a little black and blue all around.

When he got home.

The next morning.

A big thank you to all who answered my phone calls, relayed messages, and offered to help. Thank you Jen, Elias, and Elaina for showing up at the waiting room to entertain Logan. The entire time we were in the ER room, Noah wanted to go back out and play with them. And thank you God for protecting my little boy from anything more serious. When I told Noah that I didn't mean to get in his way ("You forgot to move, mom") he said, "That's OK mom. I love you." I have one brave, strong, and super-fast, super hero.

Put Me In Coach!

Logan was all about playing basketball at Grandma's. Daddy couldn't believe his form, and that he was shooting jump shots. He's already shooting like a pro! He even shot it over the much taller defender.

My Best Friend

How much do I miss her? On Saturday, I got up at 7am, to drive 45 minutes to go to Jazzercise for the 5th time last week, just to see her! For a few hours, two halves of a brain were reunited. Girl's got needs for her best friend!

(Almost 24 wks pregnant)

There were 5 in the bed and the pregnant one said.....

WILL THEY EVER GET THE POWER BACK ON?!? We had a slumber party at Grandma's on Saturday night. Not as glamorous as it sounds. We were sitting at the kitchen table around 7pm, dragging out leftovers for dinner. All of a sudden, there was a loud explosion and the power went out. Oops. Papa called the power company and they sent someone out. No problem, the lights were back on across the street....but not in our house. So the guy went around to the back of my parents' house (my dad followed) and guess what: "We should be able to have the power back on by midnight. I need help to replace the bad transformer." Ugghh.

So Papa brought out his generator (he bought it for Hurricane Rita) and we had light and a fan in the kitchen. I gave the boys a bath by candlelight. Then they kept asking to go to bed. Does that ever happen? Grandma and Papa threaded the extension cords through the fireplace and plugged in two fans in the living room. It was time for a slumber party.

The boys did finally fall asleep, about where you see thme in the picture, with their animals (Zoo and Lambie). It didn't leave much room for pregnant mommy and her giant body pillow. Grandma and Papa hit the floor.

Needless to say, midnight came and went with no power. At about 1:30am, I got up to go to the bathroom, for the 3rd time, and noticed headlights on the street. The power guy was back. Papa went out to talk to him. We could see flashlights and people walking in the backyard behind ours. They were installing a new transformer. The power should be back on in 45 minutes. We could only hope. I was laying there thinking, well at least I have something to blog about now. I was dreaiming up post titles: And in the 7th hour, let there be light! About that time, 2:30am, the lights came back on. I slowly carried all things, including kids back upstairs to the bedroom, so we could all sleep in a little and not be up at the first sign of daylight. What a night! Bring on the coffee!

And Papa, gas up the generator, there's a Tropical Storm headed your way......

There are some things a pregnant woman shouldn't do....

Like try to spray out the big, giant trash can with Lyscol and water to try and make the garage smell somewhat bearable again. But if I didn't try to do it, it wouldn't get done. Good thing breakfast was only 2 pieces of toast, and I Jazzercised for an hour since then.

A Wiggly Party!

Sweet Sarah

A Blog-Worthy Weekend

Well, the boys and I have returned from our weekend in H-town. There was so much to do to get ready for the week, that now that I'm ready to blog, I need to go to bed. So it will have to wait for tomorrow. I'll leave a few pics until then.....