J Bug

Poor little Julian hasn't gotten much ink on my blog lately, what with baby sister turning one, learning to walk, and Momma's limited picture-taking and blog writing time.

But let me assure you, he is more "more" than ever. Unlike Alice in Wonderland: He has not lost his "muchness". He is very much.
He is more loving than ever. My favorite is when he just runs up to me out of the blue to hug my leg and say "I love you Mommy." He is patient and sweet with his little sister (most of the time). We went through a short phase of him being too rough and kind of mean to her, so we're relieved that's over (for now). I love it when I hear him talking to her in the other room and saying things like: "Oh no honey, be careful," or "Here Evie, I'll show you how."
He is more active than ever. He loves to run, jump, somersault, dance, and roughhouse. Get him around cousin Cam and the two of them are like a couple of wild monkeys.

A rare quiet moment

His vocabulary is astounding and he says the funniest things. He likes to ask what all the places are as we pass by in the car so he can point them all out the next time. One that Daddy told him the other day was the car wash by our house "J.D.'s Car Wash". We drove by the next day and Julian says, "Look Momma. There's the GD car wash!"
We are currently in the throes of WHY. I've heard about this stage, but I had no idea the extent of it. I'm not exaggerating, I bet Julian asks why at least 50 times a day. They're these long strings of why-answer-why-answer-why-answer. And it really makes you think about what you know and believe (or don't know).
As exhausting as it can be, he honestly does want to know the answer every time and he remembers what we tell him. It's like extreme learning for toddlers.
Speaking of learning, this kid is smart. He can count to 20, knows his address, city, and state, knows all his colors in Spanish, and is starting to ask which letters spell which words and how to spell this or that. He can read most of his favorite books by memory and he knows them so well, I can't believe he's not reading the words off the page.

But none of that is any substitute for the School of Why. I've started trying to get Why High Scores or Best Time Records. It's pretty satisfying to give the answer that finally ends a Why Marathon.

Well, my very much two year old very much needs some quiet time now. Time to run...

Evie in ONEderland

I've never seen a one-year-old enjoy a party so much.
Other than being a little overwhelmed by all the faces at first (she woke up about 20 mins. in), Evie was happy and smiling the whole time. I think she liked all the attention and particularly liked having all eyes on her as she tasted her birthday cake. She hammed it up good, laughing and dancing and making eyes at all her guests.

She liked opening all her gifts (with help from Big Brother, of course) and kissed all the baby dolls as she opened them.

Evie kisses like she means it!

The theme was "Evie in ONEderland" and I had a great time planning everything. I learned my lesson after Julian's first birthday party (I made all the food!) and this time we had pizza and lemonade. Although Evie didn't really "get" the theme (or the reason for the party, for that matter) it was all worth it when Julian woke up from his nap and saw the house decorated. He sure thought it was a wonderland; walking around saying "Wow, pretty! Oh cool! Look at that, Momma!"

(Guess that means I better get started on his party...)

Our Wonderland

Sneaky!

Thanks to everyone who came and helped celebrate our little Evelyn!

In hindsight, maybe punch balloons were not the best favors for three two-year-olds?

"A birthday is just the first day of another 365-day journey around the sun. Enjoy the trip." - Unknown
I've loved every moment of your first trip around the sun, Evie. Thanks for sharing it with us...we look forward to many, many more beautiful journeys together. We love you!

Brave Boy

So this really is old news, but I finally got the pics off my phone...

One Sunday about a month ago, Julian went running down the hall to his room to get ready for his nap. Mitch and I were in the kitchen when we heard the crash and scream. Our first look at him with blood running down his face told us we were headed to the ER.

It was very scary (mostly for Mitch and I) and I felt so bad for my little guy. (Not to mention completely skeeved at seeing the inside of his head.) Seeing blood doesn't bother me too much...but seeing the blood coming from my precious baby just about broke my heart.

He was so brave and only fussed a little when we had to press the numbing cream on. After that, he didn't feel a thing. He didn't even know what "Dr. Dave" was doing when he was getting shots and stitches.

He's fine now...in fact, the stitches are out and and his scar is healing nicely.

Happy Birthday Evelyn

One year ago we welcomed our sweet baby girl into the world...and it hasn't been the same since.

Our world is sweeter, funnier, and sleepier. It's cuter and busier, a bit messier, and lots more fun.

We love you Evelyn Kaye. Happy First Birthday Sweetheart!