Oh hi.

I'm just sellingahousebuyingahousepackingeverythingweownandmovingthreedaysbeforeChristmas. 

But I just sorted and boxed three junk drawers, so how's about a blog post for a packing detox?

Abram will be two in just over a month, and I can believe it. He seems so big to me these days. He loves to climb and jump and make rarr noises. He loves things that go weeooweeeoo (think siren noise), buses, horses, and puppies. He is obsessed with "Pea-baba" (the movie Mr. Peabody and Sherman), loves to cuddle in a lap to read and flip the pages by himself, and thinks "butt" and "toot" are comic gold. He loves to chase and be chased and says so many words. On normal nights, he sleeps like a champ and most days is a pretty good eater. (Although I think he feeds at least half of his food to the dogs.) Speaking of which, Indy and Abe are besties now and when he calls her, slapping his hands on his legs, she comes a'runnin'. It is as cute as it sounds, trust me.

But don't get me wrong, he can also throw a mean tantrum. His go-to angry move consists of flinging himself to the ground and then ever-so-gently bonking his head. Then he cries accusingly at us as if to say: "How could you let me do that?!"

Ahhh, two. Good to see you again, old friend.

Evelyn is loving school and has been learning so much. She writes her name beautifully and makes the greatest artwork. Her teachers say she's confident but humble and likes to help her friends. She's mama's little shadow and wants to do everything I do and be right where I am at all times. (Mostly adorable, sometimes exhausting.) When we cuddle in bed at night she hugs me tight and says "I love you more than anything." I believe her.

She has recently tested out fibbing for fun, writing her name in Sharpie on our bedroom wall, and other mischief.

Mr. Julian is doing amazing in his kindergarten re-do. I'm thrilled to hear that he's moved into somewhat of a leadership role in his class; his teacher told me that the kids go to him if they need help reading something and he has been helping his friends put on their cold weather gear before recess. My only concern was that he might be bored with the content a second time around, but they've been great about raising the bar to make things new and challenging for him.

He makes up his own jokes (and sometimes they're actually funny!), plays so awesomely with Abe (sometimes with Evie), and is always curious and learning.

Farewell Summer

First day of school, we put our house on the market, Mitch's busiest work month...we got some stuff going on. We're busy, a little crazy, and happy. 

Evie's heading to preschool this month. She did really well at vacation Bible school this year, except for the last two days when she didn't want to go because "you have to pick everything up and it's so long!" So, consider me nervous about much longer times and more picking up at school. Guess she'll just have to learn.

She's a big four year old now and knows she's getting "so big!" She thinks she grows several inches every night as she sleeps. She's a one-woman show and says the funniest things. I'm surprisingly tearful about her heading off to school. Summer with all three at home has been a mile a minute, so I figured I'd be ready for a break...but the thought of having her gone so much during the day makes me sad and makes me realize how big she's getting. :(

Julian is taking a second crack at kindergarten this year. I have no doubt that he would have done great in first grade; he's a reading pro, was at the top of his class for science and math, and did just fine behavior-wise. But we found out about some sensory and vision issues earlier this year, and we're only a few months in working on them. I feel like another year in Kinder can't hurt and might help. I'm also happier having him be closer in age to his classmates this way. And luckily, he doesn't mind at all...and I'm thinking this might be the only age that would happen. 

I dropped him off this morning and he was excited and confident. Surprisingly, (or not?) I still had a hard time leaving him. 

And Mr. Abram is such a funny, sweet little goof. He gives these great tight-squeezing hugs that make me so happy. He takes my face in his little hands and kisses me over and over. He also screams at the top of his lungs frequently and has started throwing some little temper tantrums. He thinks being told "no" is hilarious. He's getting a mind of his own and it's adorable and a little scary. 

Evie and Julian sure do get a kick out of him though. Julian has really enjoyed being able to help more with him and takes pride in his big brother role. He likes to hold his hand and help him up and down steps and out to the car. He's even started unbuckling his car seat for me. 

Evie vacillates between kisses and sweetness and secretly pushing him down when he's trying to take her stuff. She's helping make sure he can hold his own. (Spoiler alert: He can.)

Abe is talking so much now and repeating like crazy. The other day, he was crying about a toy and said clear as day: "I want to play with that." He's a little monkey and loves to climb anything and everything, which has resulted in a few goose eggs and bloody lips. Doesn't stop him!

Aaaaaand, halfway through the first day of school and I can say with confidence...whew. It was time. :)

Happy Father's Day

Happy First Birthday (Nearly Half a Year Ago) Abram!

Oh, hi.

This blog is still a thing...I think.

Even though the pictures saved for the next post are from Abe's first birthday and it's, uh...nearly five months later. We're still cool, right?



So Abe turned one! And now he's 16 months old and such a great guy. He's hilarious and sweet and full of it.

Let's make this one about him, shall we? Let's just mix it all together with his first birthday pictures like it makes sense. Ok?
Ok.

Abram is such a joy. He loves to sing in the car. He's walking all over the place now, such a funny little wobble step that WILL make you smile, no matter what. He loves balls and books and being the center of attention.

The kid's got an arm on him and throws everything. Done with dinner? Fling the rest at Mom! Ready to start the day? An empty bottle to Mommy's head works! (Time for his own room, perhaps?)

Yes, he's still next to me in my room. I always have a hard time moving my babies into their own rooms, and I'm quite sure they're ready for it long before I am. But Julian and Evie got their long-awaited bunk beds, so there's an empty bedroom just waiting for little Abester. Probably just a couple more cracks on the nose with binkies or toys at 6:30am and he'll be on his way.

He says so much these days even if we don't understand most of it. It's fun listening to his constant dialogue and once in awhile I can pick out a word here and there. He communicates really well with nodding "yes" and shaking "no" (or slapping me across the face...that's also a "no").

He's a happy, happy boy...always up for a dance, a kiss, or a tickle. Still workin' with just two tiny chompers, but they work well enough for anything and everything.

And one of the best parts of all of our days is bedtime for Abe. He responds to "I love you" with a big, loud MWAH and kisses for each of us.

Alright, so that was a weird post. But it was like ripping off a band-aid...it had to be done and hopefully I can get caught up before another 5-freakin'-months fly by.

One Year Old

T-minus 20 days

Blurry picture, but hey, at least it happened. 

This baby is going to be one in a few short weeks and that's crazy to me. It's crazy, right? How has it been a year already?

He's saying some more fun things (more, all done, Hi Indy! Hi Goose!) and has two actual teeth. He's my little late bloomer and that's okay by me. He's making the baby stage last longer for me just in case he's the last one. 

He loves being around his sibs who cause him to either be laughing like crazy or wide-eyed in awe. He gets around great in his walker and is constantly bashing our shins and running over our toes in an attempt to keep up with all the kitchen happenings. His favorite toy is the tupperware cupboard and dude can get that thing emptied out in about 30 seconds flat.

He loves to growl and we have conversations made up entirely of monster noises. Other interests include: splashing wildly in the tub, ripping out dog hair (aka "petting" the doggies), and giving the sweetest hugs and kisses.

Time to start planning the big birthday party!