Merry Christmas

We have had so much fun this Christmas! Julian is really starting to appreciate all the fun things we're getting to see and do during the season. He loves opening his advent calendars every day and has decorated cookies, made a gingerbread house, gone to Christmas at the Zoo, decorated ornaments, helped Mommy bake, given (and gotten) gifts, and more.
We went to get the obligatory pictures with Santa and J wasn't afraid to sit with him. He even told him he wanted an iPod for Christmas! (Sorry, buddy.) Evie didn't seem to mind sitting with a stranger either.
I started this post a few days ago and now here it is 11:30 pm on Christmas Eve. Santa has already been to our house and all Mommy really wants for Christmas is for my sick little girl to sleep well tonight.

We had a fun party at Mom's house tonight and afterward we went to see some really cool Christmas lights (or as Julian says "Crimas Yites"). Tomorrow morning we'll have our own little family Christmas and I can't wait to snuggle up with a cup of coffee and my fleece-wrapped baby to watch that little guy tear into some gifts (Buzz! Woody! Sparty!!) Then it's off to breakfast at Grandma and Grandpa's and what is sure to be a crazy fun time with the cousins.

Now I only wonder after all this build-up, how many months before J stops talking about Christmas?
Merry Christmas to all and Happy Birthday Jesus!

4 Months Old & Bragging for Posterity

Happy Four Months Evelyn! Time is going by so fast, I cannot believe she's this big already. She is getting better with toys and can hold them and shake them and get them into her mouth now. She laughs and smiles so easily and just loves to make noise.

What a little lady...already crossing her legs and folding her hands.

Her doctor appointment went well and she's right on track. She is 50th percentile for height and between 50th and 75th for weight. She was not a fan of the shots, but calmed right down once I picked her up to commiserate.

Julian was awfully worried for her though, since he had just gotten shots himself. He kept warning her "Evie, shots hurt."

A favorite nap spot

Helping Mommy get her work done

Julian's two year appointment was mostly uneventful. The shots were much harder this time since he knew what was going on and screamed "Ouch! Stop!" after the first one. He made a full recovery though and got to pick out a toy afterward for being so brave. The doctor was happy with all his accomplishments and we tried not to brag too much.

But what good is my blog if I can't brag a little here? :) Besides, I look at this as sort of a virtual baby book.

J has gotten so good with colors, numbers, letters and shapes! He knows pretty much all colors and has learned heart, star, square, circle, triangle, and diamond.

He counts to three like this: "one, two, one". But he can go from about 7 to 15 once he gets on a roll. He knows most of 1-9 by sight. The other day, Mitch was holding our coffee mugs and Julian pointed at them and said "two cups".

He also knows almost the whole alphabet by sight and can make an "o" by himself. And he can even read!! ;) He knows the word "Meijer" and reads it off anything Meijer brand in the house. It doesn't even have to be in red and blue for him to recognize it.

But before you think he's a complete genius, here he is eating paint...

Christmas Pictures

Well, you've already seen most of the pictures we had taken at the top of the blog. We sure didn't get very many. Even though Julian was very excited and kept saying "pictures....ready", as soon as we tried to get him to sit down in the studio, it was another story.

He sat still for milliseconds at a time and I give the photographer a lot of credit for even getting the few shots she did. And Little Miss Evelyn didn't feel like cracking a smile even once. Oh well.
To be honest, I'm just happy it takes the pressure off me. The whole excuse for getting my nice camera was so we wouldn't have to pay to get professional pics done all the time. (Not implying mine are professional quality...we were just looking for a step up from snapshots.) But I wanted nice Christmas pictures, and thought trying to wrangle the kids and take my own would be too hard. Now, if I get some nice ones along the way, they'll just be a bonus.

Like these ones for instance... :)

Thankful

Sometimes, I'll stand in the window watching Julian play outside in the backyard and fight back tears. Not only is it just so amazing what a little person he is, but his sweetness just kills me. I try to follow his train of thought as he picks a toy and drags it through the yard, talking to himself...stopping to look into the sky for an airplane he just heard and talking to himself about it. Seconds later, he'll spot something so cool that he shouts "Mommy!" so I'll come check it out and discuss it with him. He laughs at the dogs running around and throws rocks in the firepit and bangs on the window, cracking himself up.
At night, I tuck him in bed and tell him I love him and he responds with "lalaloo...choo" (love you too). He tells me to be "careful, honey" or says "there you go, honey", and when he wakes up in the morning he yells "Momma...Mommy...Mom!" until I come in and he can tell me good morning and give me a big hug.
And then there's my baby girl. I'll sit in bed holding her as she sleeps, admiring her long, dark lashes and tears well up as I study her perfection: Her soft little lips, her crazy after-bath monkey hair, and the way she nuzzles in to get just a little bit closer to me in her sleep.
Falling in love with your children is like nothing else. Don't get me wrong, I love Mitch and I happen to think our love story is pretty epic. But meeting your babies and falling head over heels is such an amazing experience. They're these little people...part you, part of the other person you love most in this world...and they want nothing more than you. There's just no way to understand how much being a parent changes your heart for the better until you've been there. My little family brings me so much happiness, I can't believe they're all mine.
I am overwhelmed by my blessings. I am so thankful for my babies, my husband and best friend, our families, our home, our jobs, our health...we have so much to be grateful for.
"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow." -- Melody Beattie

Three Months Old

I've had these pictures taken for about a week now...but for some reason writing this post has seemed so daunting. Maybe it's because I've got about 25 projects going on at once, a Christmas shopping list in my head, a mountain of laundry downstairs, a sinkful of dishes, a job, two kids, and a Daddy at conferences this week. Life is good...busy, but good.


Evie Girl is still growing like a weed. She's reaching out to touch us and her toys and has discovered her hands and how to get them into her mouth. She's such a talker and will smile and chat with you as long as you'd like. She's very social and would prefer someone in her face most of the day. I told Mitch that I think she's going to be more like him -- outgoing and chatty -- while I think J is more like me -- more reserved and a little shy sometimes. It's amazing to see how different two kids can be.

The girl loves to cuddle...

Julian is still collecting new words every day and I love hearing what he has to say! He has recently discovered Toy Story 3 and is now obsessed with Woody and Buzz. When we leave the house he asks "Woody come too?" His other favorites of the moment include painting and using "tamps" (stamps), making collages, and playing catch.


He cracks me up all day long with his new phrases and is becoming more and more loving with Evelyn. He likes to help burp her by patting her back and sometimes he'll just come pet her head or talk to her in a baby voice. He gives us hugs for no reason, says "I love you" out of the blue, and has started telling us "good job" and calling Mitch and I "honey".

Playing the drums -- another new fave

That's not to say we don't have our fair share of tantrums, time outs, and screaming. He is two, after all. But the tantrums are usually short-lived and he can be talked down and reasoned with fairly easily; he always gives hugs after a time out, and the screaming...well, it's getting better. :)

For instance: Here, I had to promise him a secret to get him over to me without a fit.

Love these kids.

Happy Halloween!

Halloween has been lots of fun this year! Even though officially it was only yesterday, we had already been trick-or-treating twice...once at the Zoo Boo with Grammy and Poppa and once at church with Aunt Amanda and Camden.

Ready for the Zoo Boo

Daddy and his little kitty

Woah! (Watching big brother on the carousel)

Last night we went over to Great-Grandpa's house to see everyone and then went around his neighborhood. J did a good job going up to the doors and saying trick-or-treat (and thank you!) and even got to see a big fire truck and get candy from the fireman. I think his favorite part was the walk -- he keeps asking to go for a walk today. It's probably going to take a little explaining that we can't go up to houses and ask for candy anymore.

Where's my candy?

Uncle Tyler doing his impression of "the Julian run"...

And the original!

Julian has really gotten into all the "pooky" (spooky) stuff. That is his new favorite word and we drive around after dark looking for "pooky houses" like we're looking at Christmas lights. Once I found out how much he liked all the decorations, we had to run out and get some at the last minute. Let's just say that there's a red-eyed, battery-powered plastic bat that flies around over our dinner table now. I think we're sufficiently spooky here.

And although not really Halloween related, I have to brag on my little boy a bit. He is talking so much now and making 3 and 4 word sentences. (ie: "More pooky house please!") I am always trying to keep up with him when he's talking to me because he seems to gain new words every second. Yesterday in the car home from church, he pointed to a pond and said "lake" and was showing me "cowds" in the sky. We've never even taught him those, so I don't even know where he got them. This is such a fun age.

Evelyn is as smiley as ever and such a sweetie. We all love to play little games to make her bust out in that irresistible, eye-squinting grin. And I can't tell you how many times a day Mitch or I will stop the other one and say "Aww, look at her..." because she's smiling in her sleep, or curling up like a little shrimp in her bassinet, or she's cooing and smiling at our ridiculous attempts at baby humor, or she's gazing lovingly at her big brother...or any other moment of adorableness that we don't want to miss.


And yes, J may be experiencing the growing pains of being two (temper tantrums, screaming fits, general toddler frustrations) and Evie might prefer to be held 24/7 and have some major meltdowns over tummy aches....but our kids are just so awesome. They make us so happy and we are having so much fun being their parents.

Cleaning off the puppy face and chocolate...

(And for the record, we got some bath drops that turn the water different colors. We don't have swamp water coming out of our faucets.)