Birthday weekend fun

Well, we have one more action-filled weekend ahead of us and then I think things can slow down a bit. Garrett is turning 2 on Sunday and we are having a good bit of family (around 15 people) here to help him celebrate. This has prompted KP and I to work like fools on this house for the last month(+) trying to get everything done we could think of so that it looks nice when everyone is here. We have done more landscaping and working outside than I have in a while and it is looking really nice ... which is saying something as we are in the midst of a nasty drought so watering only happens twice a week and in certain hours.

On Wednesday I hosted Garrett's playgroup here at the house for a birthday party (6 2-year olds and 2 under a year ... we would have had more but 3 kids couldn't make it). We had a blast. I had t-shirts to decorate (moms' mostly did that one since the kids were all 2 and the t-shirt paint is permanent but the kids did pick the stamps and colors for their shirts), fingerpainting outside, a kiddie pool and lots of outside toys for the kiddos. The kids ran around like little maniacs and then ate all the pizza and cupcakes they could hold and passed out on the way home. All in all it was a great day. I will post some pictures of Garrett and his new t-shirts from the party ... unfortunately I forgot to take many pictures during the party as I was a little sidetracked with all that was going on. Oohh well.

The kids are doing great - it's just hard to believe that G is 2 and B is 6 mos. Braden is the sweetest soul and really all he wants is to be fed, put down for his naps and then held and played with .. if you give him that he is the happiest baby around. G is pushing pretty hard right now - he's in that 2-year old thing. He likes to do the opposite of what I tell him adn then watch me for a reaction - I wish I could say that I handled it well but sometimes I really don't. I love him to pieces but there are times I could just pinch his little head off. I guess that's normal. I am just working on not reacting out of anger - it takes all I have some days.

Well, I'm off here to go mop downstairs and do another round of pick-up G's toys. If I have time I might try to mow the back yard this afternoon so KP doesn't have to do it tonight.

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Both of the boys

I took this one last week when mom came to visit. Garrett is such a good big brother!

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Braden pics

Here he is enjoying playing in his exersaucer.

As you can see he likes bathtime!

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Garrett's last day of school

Here is G getting ready to go to his last day of school. I'm not sure if he's happy to go to school or if the excitement is because it's the last time he'll go for a few months...
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G with boots

I love this picture -- he put his boots on the wrong feet and was just so cute and silly.

General updates ...

Well, another month is here and the boys are a little older(as we all are I suppose). The changes are so easy to see in Braden - it is almost like he changes daily sometimes. All of his birth hair has fallen out and he now looks like he has this little crew cut. He is trying to sit, and can when supported, and is really enjoying eating solids (he's a bit of an eater). He is growing so fast and that is something when mom can actually see it. I see it more in his clothes than anything - at not quite 5 months he's fully in 6-9month stuff and is coming out of some of that. He's a big boy - a little over 17lbs and 26" .. he has some baby fat but really he is just a big boy. Garrett is doing great - he is now out of "school" and we are enjoying the more lazy schedule of summer. We filled up his pool on the deck (it is a HUGE baby pool from his uncle Warren) and he plays in that most days and then today I got brave and took both boys to the neighborhood pool by myself. It was Braden's first time in a pool but I knew he'd love it because he loves his baths. Garrett was a little skiddish - the water was cold and much deeper than in his pool but he played on the steps and got in up to his chin a few times. Both of them are so worn out they are out cold. Garrett actually fell asleep in his high chair while eating his lunch ... I just picked him up and took him onto bed. It was really cute in a pitiful kind of way.

On other fronts things are just going right along for us. Kevin's job situation has settled - they just moved him laterally to the new company (the surgery division of Healthsouth branched off to form their own company and he was moved as well). It should be a good thing for him - he really likes the guy that heads up his division and Healthsouth IT is about to have some serious cut-backs (like a quarter of their staff will be let go). Neither of us were really ever worried - we've both just been praying for a good resolution for this situation knowing that God is in control of our lives and God provided the best possible outcome. He truly is amazing.

I am feeling a little more confident in my ability to raise these 2 wonderful little boys. I was a little nervous at first, especially with them being so close together but that is gone. Braden had a wonderful nighttime schedule but that has gone away in the last few weeks. He had this really bad cold(we all did) and was apparently teething at the same time (he's such a good baby I didn't even realize he was teething until they came in) and now his sleeping is all wonkered. I will get up once at night but not twice (he wants to eat at midnight and at 5am - I feed him and put him down at 8pm and he can go 8+ hours but for some reason doesn't want to do it overnight). So the battle of the wills ensues - I am determined to get him back on track and am only feeding him once and offering water the next time (he doesn't appreciate that and let's me know it) so I am hoping he will settle back into a routine soon. Sleep is such a big deal right now -- I feel like that's all I think about sometimes.

On a more personal note I am working on getting rid of ALLLLL of the baby weight I accumulated in teh last few years. 3 babies in 3 years took its toll. I am back to walking (couldn't go for a week because I was so sick but started back this morning) and am trying to get between 15-20 miles a week .. then I plan to up it to 20-25 a week. I go twice a day - once in the morning with the boys (Braden in a baby bjorn and G in a jogging stroller) and then again with Kevin and the dogs at night. The second time we go almost a mile but it is a stroll - the first I am moving as fast as I can and go a couple of miles. Hopefully, by the end of August I will have 15-20lbs off me --- my total goal is 30 pounds. I am doing this mainly for me - I don't like the way I feel when I'm this heavy and I hate the way I look and the way my body feels... also it will make me a healthier person(and with 2 small ones and me closing in on 40 that's a big deal).

That's about all that's going on over here.

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