The Best Lunch

I just had the best lunch experience, so I thought I'd share.  It may not sound that remarkable, but it was one of those moments that you just sit back and enjoy as a mother.  Before lunch, we had gone to a playdate where Evan and Ben both decided to be at their fussy best.  So, when we got back home I was ready for a break!  We put on some Sesame Street and I fed Ben the rest of his bottle, and we all calmed down a little.

Next, it was lunch time.  Ben sat happily in his Bumbo, did some not-so-happy tummy time (in which he started to lift up his head more!), and finally got tired enough to go in his swing for a nap.  Meanwhile, Evan watched a little Sesame Street and helped his brother with his tummy time by patting his back and rubbing his head.  What a sweet big brother!  All of this happened while I was preparing lunch, so we were off to a good start-one tired, well-fed baby, and one content big brother.

Then when it came time to wash hands and come to the table, Evan happily obliged.  We spent the next half hour eating lunch, and Evan managed to consume two pieces of watermelon, 5-6 bites of pizza, a fairly large hunk of cheese, half a pear, and half a glass of milk.  It always makes my heart glad when my picky eater decides he's hungry, and he's been on a real eating kick lately.  Between that and getting up at 9:15 this morning, I think my boy might be going through a bit of a growth spurt!

The good eating helped, but it was the conversation that was the best part of lunch.  We discussed how watermelons were triangles, counted our 4 pieces of cheese, and then started picking out all sorts of letters.  He started by saying that "V" was for violin.  Then he said that "V" was for "that", so we had to talk about the "th" instead.  Next, he said that "M" was for mommy which we had talked about before.  Then, he teased me by saying "V" was for watermelon.  I asked him what watermelon really started with.   He thought about it and then said "Y".  Pretty close if you ask me, but I told him to think and try again, and sure enough he got "W".  He finished out his lecture on the alphabet by telling me that Evan also had a "V" in it.  Pretty smart if you ask me!  The lunch finished as we listened to the music cube and talked about all the different instruments and how they made noise. 

That might not have sounded that earth shattering to you, and it really wasn't, but it was really nice and reminded me how much fun it is to stay at home with these guys.  I get frustrated a lot by the procedural things that go wrong.  They wear me out and we all get cranky sometimes.  But watching these little guys learn things and have fun is better than anything else I've ever done, hands down.  I was able to step back and see that during lunch today.  Now, everyone's happily sleeping at the same time, and I have a chance to actually breathe (or do dishes and laundry). 

Who knows what the afternoon will hold, but it should be an adventure, right?

(Here's a recent picture of my big boy just for fun...there will be more of his little brother in the next entry...)

The Fourth

As you can see, we had a great 3rd of July, and our 4th was just as fantastic!  We started out the day with a trip to scenic Bonsal, NC to ride on the New Hope Railway which runs on the last Sunday of every month.  Evan has been obsessed with all things train-related lately, so we knew that it would be a hit.  When we got there we met our friends Hilary and Carson and headed off to watch the model train display.  Thomas the Train was actually on display so Evan and every two-year old boy in the area could have stayed there all day. 

(Evan watching the model train)

However, we had to move on to actually ride on a real train!  The train was open on the sides with a shaded roof, so we had a great view and a nice breeze the whole time.  When we first got on board all of the little boys sat there silently in awe.  It took them a while before they started running around and taking it all in.  At one point, Evan headed to the back of the train car, was saying something, and pointing to the connector between the two trains.  Finally, I figured out that he was saying "knuckle coupler".  I turned to the train conductor standing nearby and asked if that was indeed a knuckle coupler.  He said that it was.  I was amazed!  Turns out Ian had been pointing those out on another train earlier in the day, but I was still impressed that Evan remembered.

(One of the trains)

(Me and the boys heading toward the train)

(My boys on the train)

(Inside our train)

After our train ride we headed home and Evan proceeded to take a record setting nap-4 hours!  This worked out perfectly because we knew that we would have a late night.  After an early dinner the whole family headed down to the American Tobacco Campus to listen to some music an celebrate the fourth.  We all sat on a blanket, people watching, and listening to bluegrass.  Both of the boys enjoyed the festivities. 

(Our view on the lawn...the stage is under the water tower.)

(The boys and I listen to the music.)

As the sun started to set, we headed to Ian's office which just so happens to be right next to the ball park where 4th of July fireworks would be happening.  We sat in the dark in their lunchroom, Ben decided that it was time to fall asleep, and we waited for the fireworks.   It turned out to be a fabulous location.  We could watch the fireworks, without the noise, in the comforts of the air conditioned office.  Evan thought they were really cool.  He can't wait until he can stay up that late again!

(Happy...)

(Happy...)

(Happy Fourth of July!)

Summer Nights

Back to our Fourth of July celebration narration after that short break...After saying goodbye to the Yurasko family at the blueberry patch, we made a quick stop at our local Great Clips to remedy a rather messy situation that had been living on the top of Evan's head.  He needed a cooler summer haircut desperately!  So, he climbed up into the seat, got his traditional haircut lollipop and the hairdresser went to work.  I always think Evan looks so much more grown up after he gets his haircut.

(Before...)

(After!)

After his haircut and a nap, we ended up heading out to dinner with our friends.  We met our friends Abby, Jason, Quinn, and Jonas and Hilary, Brian, and Carson.  We went to a great restaurant with a lot of outdoor seating next to a courtyard with live music and lots of room to run.  It was a fabulous place to take our toddlers.  While we were ordering and waiting for our food the kids could run through the courtyard and get some energy out. 

When our food arrived I figured we'd have a tough time getting Evan back in his seat.  He never is very motivated by food.  However, they had these great fried donut-like rolls.  He hopped right back in his seat, and I've never seen his cram food in his face like that!  We'll have to take him back to this place more often!

(Mmmm...yummy roll!)

(Ben enjoyed his dinner too.)

After some toddler dancing and good conversation we headed home for the night.  We got home as the summer sun was just beginning to set and the fireflies were heading out for the night.  We had fireworks to set off.  Ben sat in his car seat to watch and we got out the smoke bombs, sparklers, and poppers.  Evan had a blast.  He had no fear holding the sparklers, one in each hand.  He loved throwing the poppers, although we had to convince him not to throw them at the dog.  He had a ball running through the smoke as we let off each smoke bomb.  It was over far too quickly and we all had to head in for bed.  After that, we knew he would have a ball watching the big fireworks the next night.  Stay tuned!

(Sparklers in both hands)

(Throwing poppers, but fortunately not at the dog this time)

(There is  a toddler lost behind all that smoke.)

The Elusive Smile...

We are taking a break from our regularly scheduled Fourth of July Report.  I've had some requests for pictures of our little smiley Ben.  The smiles really aren't that elusive anymore, they're pretty frequent.  He's getting to be a much happier boy and we're starting to hear little coos with the smile. 

The other day we put him in the baby Bumbo seat that we got for him.  While he's a little young and his head still flops a little when he's tired, he really enjoys it.  Here are some pictures of our little smiley man enjoying his new seat!

Not quite smiling yet, but we're definitely amused...

Yep, this is pretty fun!

Baby Ben is lovin' life!

On Their Way to the Beach

This weekend was a busy and fantastic Fourth of July weekend.  I have so many things to post and tell everyone about!  We'll start with our visitors that arrived Friday night.  My long-time friend from high school Sarah, her husband Christopher, and their daughter Alexandra were stopping through on the way to visit Christopher's family at the beach in South Carolina.  They only stayed until late Monday morning, but we were so lucky to get the chance to see them.

Friday night we all stayed in and enjoyed a little grilled sausage for dinner.  We all sat around and chatted, except for Alexandra and Evan who spent the time getting used to everything and not eating much of their dinner.  They are one day apart from each other in age so it's always great to see how they interact with each other.  The first night they basically kept their distance.  After everyone else went to bed Sarah and I stayed up far too late catching up like we always do.  It's so nice to talk to old friends.

The next morning the kids played for a little while, and the parents got ready to head out.  Unfortunately, all two-year olds share a lack of desire to share, so there was a lot of fussing over a fire truck that they both wanted to play in.  I've discovered the useful tool of the timer.  I can set it and tell Evan that he has to share when the timer goes off.  It seems to work as well as anything else.

After we had all mobilized we headed out to the blueberry patch to do a little berry picking.  Actually we started out in the blackberry patch which is small and quicky picked over.  We did manage to get a few though.  Alexandra definitely liked those the best, depositing most of them in her mouth.  Evan was more concerned about only picking the ones that were completely black with no red on them, so he didn't pick many.  However, once in the blueberry patch, Alexandra just wanted to be carried while Evan was content to eat bushels of blueberries.  You never know what two-year olds will like.

(The Yurasko family getting ready to pick some berries)

Once we had picked our share the Yuraskos were again on their way.  We were sad to see them go, but happy that they had come to visit.  We can't wait to see them again, maybe heading up to DC for a trip.  Once a year is too long in between visits.  Take a look at Alexandra and Evan at their first meeting a year ago and then this weekend.  What a difference a year makes!

(June 2009)

(Our little berry pickers today)

(A budding romance, what do you think?)

Happy Fourth of July

Happy Fourth of July Everyone!  We are having a great weekend and can't wait to share all the fun with you. 

Sunny Days

Yes, you can thank Sesame Street for the title to this entry.  I have been watching quite a few episodes while I've been feeding Ben to keep Evan entertained.  I alternate between having the Sesame Street theme song and the song for "Abby's Flying Fairy School" stuck in my head at all times.  (Those of you who have watched Sesame St. recently will have seen the fairy school.)

Anyway, the days around here have definitely been sunny and quite hot.  As a result we've had to boycott playgrounds in favor of cooler water activities.  Here are a couple of shots from a recent afternoon on our front lawn. 

(Evan and his friends Carson and Quinn hanging out by the slide.)

(Ben basks in the shade.)