They Match!

This was a major accomplishment for me. I got the children in their "matching" outfits, with no fussing from anyone. They agreed to take pictures. They smiled for said pictures. And this was all done before school while Zach was out of town for work! (Their cooperation was fueled by the two sweet rolls that they each had for breakfast, but that's a minor detail that I'm willing to overlook.)

Christmas Memories

That last Christmas post was getting a bit too long, but I did want to share some of my favorite memories from this year's Christmas season:

• Overheard while the children were playing with their new wooden Nativity set: "NO Julia, you cannot hit me with the baby Jesus!"
• Julia's reaction as we drove into Mountain Brook village one night and saw all the trees lit up: "Awe-thome!"
• Julia declaring very loudly (and out of the blue) during the Living Nativity "If I go poop in the potty I get M&Ms!!!" I did tell her that one time a while ago, but I have no idea what prompted this as we're not really working on potty training right now.
• This:

• Will's over-the-top joy when he picked out and opened a present on Christmas Eve. He had been asking all season if a particular present was "that car thing like we got Luke A." and indeed it was. I think we could have stopped with that and he would have been happy.
• Zach's over-the-top joy about the beef tenderloin wrapped in pancetta that we made for Christmas Eve dinner.
• Will's sweet program at school and how he knew all of the songs.
• Julia's version of Jingle Bells, which just involved, "Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, HEY!" over and over again. Oh, and how she asked me to sing "Manger" each night when I put her to bed.
• Julia wearing a dress I smocked for her and my dress coat from when I was three when we went to church on Christmas Eve. I tried to get her to wear the little cross necklace my mom gave her when she was born, but she declared "dat tickles!" and wasn't interested.

• The finding of the magic elf each morning and how the children were so appreciative, and almost always told him 'thank you' for whatever surprise he brought. I especially loved it on the rare days when Julia found the elf before Will and would shout, "DER DA MAGIC ELF!!! DER HE IS! TANK YOU MAGIC ELFFFFF!"

Christmas 2010

December took it out of me. I think most moms struggle with the fact that they're usually the ones doing most, if not all, of the presents, decorating, cooking, wrapping, etc, and this year was no different for me. Holiday madness coupled with the fact that work was insane--and even included a mid-month trip to Fairfax--really made me feel overwhelmed this season. And, I hated that feeling. I hated worrying if we were doing all of the fun things associated with Christmas, or if my stress over "getting everything done" was taking over (it was). I wanted to provide special, fun traditions and memories for our children, but it seemed like I didn't really get to relax and enjoy things with them until Christmas had come and gone.

This year, we didn't go see Santa. (Though, after last year's visit, I'm not sure that we really missed out on that one.) We didn't go to ZooLights. We didn't make it to our friends' ornament swap because Will and I were sick. We didn't go to our neighborhood Christmas party, or really many Christmas parties at all.

So after that Debbie-Downer opener on a Christmas post, let's focus on what we DID do: We DID go to the Advent Workshop at our church to kick off the season (and even let Julia come this year). We DID go Christmas tree shopping with my dad (while my mom was in Chicago visiting my adorable new nephew), and got our tree up and decorated pretty early in the month. We DID enjoy the Christmas program and party at the kids' school. We watched all of the classic Christmas movies on TV, and my mom took Will to see them at the Alabama Theater, as well. We read LOTS of Christmas books and wore our Christmas pajamas. We opened our chocolate Advent calendar each day (a big hit) and did our ornament Advent calendar, as well. We talked about the baby Jesus and went to the live Nativity. We hosted Carol and Bill for several days surrounding the actual holiday. We went to children's church at noon on Christmas Eve. We fixed a delicious beef tenderloin for Christmas Eve dinner. We had our traditional Christmas dinner at Mom's house Christmas Day. We ooohed and ahhhed over lights, even though we never took an official light tour. We made Christmas cookies on Christmas Eve and ate them with icing on Christmas Day. We were astounded by a white Christmas (I don't care if the weathermen didn't officially count it as a white Christmas...it snowed on Christmas Day in Alabama and that's all that matters!) We sat by the fire. We opened too many presents. We counted our blessings.

Will and Julia had a fabulous Christmas present-wise. They each got one BIG gift from Santa: a PowerWheels Ford F150 for Will (just like our neighbor's) and a play kitchen for Julia. Though, Will kept pointing out that they were really going to share these gifts: "The truck is mainly mine and the kitchen is mainly hers, but we both get to play with both of them." I think this stemmed more from his desire to play with her gift than to share his, though he has been great about giving her rides in his truck. Other hit gifts were a baby crib, high chair, and Baby Alive doll for Julia, a stand-up microphone for Will, various guitars for the family, books, art supplies, and lots of stocking stuffers. It was almost too much, but they really have enjoyed playing with the things they got. And, they weren't too manic on the actual day...

All in all, it was a great Christmas, made even better by the fact that we didn't have to go to the doctor on December 23rd as we have for the past two years. Will and I were sick before Christmas, and then mine got worse after Christmas, but for the actual day, we were all pretty good. The weather outside was frightful, but the fire was so delightful...so we stayed inside and in our pajamas and just lounged and played and all took a nap. Oh, and Zach and I realized that we already had the two best Christmas presents ever:

Wednesday Will-isms: Jackson Bo

Who is this, you ask? Why, this is Jackson Bo! Jackson Bo is Will's alter rockstar ego. Anytime he "plays rockstar" his name is Jackson Bo. And no, we don't know where that came from. In order to further his career as Jackson Bo, he's requested a stand-up microphone for Christmas, so he can sing AND play the guitar. He also wants either me or Zach to get a guitar for Christmas, so we can "rock out".

Luckily, Jackson Bo already has something that every rockstar needs: a groupie.

Those Beach Pictures

I finally got some pictures onto my computer, so here are some of my favorites from the beach.

Atlanta

A word of advice: Never, under any circumstances, go to the Georgia Aquarium on the Friday of July 4th weekend. Or any day of any holiday weekend. Or any time other than a random Tuesday afternoon in October.

So, we went to Atlanta over the Fourth of July weekend, and suffice it to say, the Aquarium was packed. Mom and Dad came with us, and the plan was to leave early Friday morning and get to the Aquarium a little after lunch. After a GPS-induced ride through the Atlanta ghetto, we made it to the Aquarium in one piece. The plan was to just to let Julia skip her nap--she would be tired, but would probably be okay, since she is genetically similar to the Energizer Bunny. Nothing about this plan worked out very well. Like I said, the place was mobbed, and it was hard for Will to see the exhibits. Julia didn't care much about seeing the exhibits because she was busy screaming her head off. Finally, I found the Aquarium's Ballroom, which is where they have events, and I was able to wheel Julia around in her stroller. She was still screaming, but at least there weren't as many people around to think I was kidnapping her. And, the Ballroom had two huge windows that showcased some of the place's best exhibits--the rest of our group joined us in the Ballroom and we were able to get close-up views of the Beluga whales and various kinds of sharks. Julia finally calmed down a bit, and we were able to go to the interactive section of the Aquarium, which the kids really enjoyed.

Trying to touch sting rays and sharks. We had to physically stop Julia from diving in.

On the fishing boat replica

Please, no more photos. I just can't handle the paparazzi.

After the Aquarium, we met some college friends for dinner and got to meet their sweet little girl. We had dinner outside on a rooftop at a brewery, and it was lovely. Surprisingly, the weather was fabulous--the humidity disappeared for a few days, so it was nice all weekend. Back at the hotel, Will stayed in the room with Mom and Dad, and Julia bunked in a suite with us. Aside from Will's twenty million questions and comments, it all worked out well.

The next morning, we went over to Atlanta's children's museum, Imagine It. It was perfect for the children, and definitely more their speed. It was similar to the McWane center (although not quite as focused on science), and the kids had a ball trying out every exhibit there. They sat on a tractor, built with sand, tap-danced, played in the water table, and generally had a fabulous time. At this point, we were right across the street from Centennial Park, so we headed over there to check out the scene. We had a bit of ice cream, and Will played in the fountain, and then it was time for the girls to go home. Julia did pretty well in the car, but once again, skipped her nap and chatted the entire time. While the girls went back to B'ham, the guys went to Will's first baseball game and saw the Braves play the Marlins. From what I hear, they had a good time. When they arrived home late that night, Zach reported, "I didn't put any more sunscreen on him, I didn't take any pictures, and all he ate the whole time was ice cream." Yep....sounds like a Daddy trip! They all had a blast.

On the actual Fourth, we just played around the house and had lunch with friends. The kids didn't even know that it was a holiday, and we didn't let on that there was anything exciting going on that night. We had thought about trying to take at least Will to see the fireworks, but after two days of crazy schedules and not enough sleep, it was better that we all went to sleep early. The next day, we went to some friends' lake for the day and all had a wonderful, relaxing time. There were several children right around Will and Julia's age, and they had fun playing together.

Whew. By the time we went back to work on Tuesday, I felt like I needed a vacation.

Happy Fourth of July!

More to come on how we celebrated (hint: the kids didn't even know it was the Fourth of July), but for now, a picture:

Tales from a Plane

We're all antsy to get off of the plane, but apparently Julia was more antsy than most.
"Julia, as soon as these people walk up the aisle, it will be our turn to go."
Julia decides to take matters in her own hands...literally. She put both hands up on the man's butt that was right in front of her, pushed, and yelled "GOOOOOO!" He never even turned around.

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Will and Zach are sitting together, and Will does not stop talking the entire time. He's asking question after question. Making up story after story. Sharing his ideas, plans, schemes, and every little thought that comes in his head. As they get off the plane, the woman behind him notes (hopefully nicely), "Your son has quite the imagination!" Why yes he does.

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Julia and I are sitting together in the first row of the plane. She is all over the place. She doesn't fuss too much, but just won't sit still, doesn't want to be buckled in her seat, doesn't want me to hold her. What she apparently wants is to walk around the plane and make new friends. It seems that the flight crew frowns on this. At one point, the flight attendant even offers me her iPhone that has some Sesame Street videos downloaded on it, in the hopes that this will keep Julia occupied. It doesn't. I try books, snacks, play-doh, coloring, more snacks, suckers...nothing matter. She just doesn't want to sit still. I spend the whole flight picking her up and putting her back in her seat.

Once we land, we're waiting in our row for Zach and Will to come up from the back of the plane. I'm still trying to corral Julia, trying to keep her in her seat (or near it) while I gather up all of our stuff. Trying to avoid her leaving the plane with a different family, which seems to be her new plan.

As a woman exits the plane, she pats me on the shoulder and says (very nicely and with a gleam in her eye), "I'll pray for you honey!" I thank her because I need every prayer I can get. (Side note: Only in the deep South do people say this, especially to people they don't know!)

Sharing snacks in the airport

Looking out the window as we land

(No, Julia is not bigger than Will--it's just the angle)

Lake, Part 2

As I noted in my last lake post, the weather over Memorial Day wasn't stellar. So, we had to find other activities to occupy our time. Maybe it's because the kids are more relaxed at the lake (or the parents are!), or maybe everything is easier when you're sitting on a screened porch overlooking the water, but they seem to be a bit more laid back when we're at the lake; every little thing doesn't turn into an argument, time out is employed less frequently, and there are more shrieks of joy and fewer temper tantrums. So, here are a few more pictures of our "indoor" activities:

Julia in her "muscles" aka the best toddler water product ever made (by Puddle Jumpers, in case you care)

Lake, Part 1

We've been to the lake a couple of times this summer: once about mid-May and once over Memorial Day weekend. It's already Will's favorite place in the world. Each time we leave the lake, he immediately asks when we're coming back. He loves being in the water, swimming with his "muscles" on, throwing rocks in the lake, or just general lazing about. The water was a bit chilly the first time we went, but that didn't bother Will in the least. He kept telling everyone else, "You'll get used to it! You'll get used to it!"

Julia is developing a love for the lake as well. She wasn't too keen on swimming the first time we went (i.e., she was attached to me like a barnacle), but by the second time, she was much more interested in "swimming" around while shouting "kick, kick, kick!" She's also fascinated with throwing things in the lake, but of course, what child isn't?

At the lake, messes are somehow easier to deal with, so we do a lot of non-water activities, too, like painting, bubbles, play-doh, and eating watermelon on the dock. We also love to pull out the baby pool, which we could of course do at home, but like everything else--it's just more fun at the lake! Here are some pics of our recent visits:

Blowing Bubbles

Throwing Rocks

Safety first!

Summertime Treat

Twenty Months!

Julia is twenty months today. I can't believe she'll be two in just a few short months. I also can't believe that when Will was this age, I was six months pregnant. What was I thinking? Luckily, it was all worth it since we got Julia out of that deal. To mark twenty months, here's a couple of pictures taken recently by Catherine Mayo. Ju-ju has been difficult to photograph lately (understatement), so I'm glad we had these taken last week.

Girlie Thursdays: First Haircut

Since Julia is getting older and more interactive, I thought she should get some weekly press time on the blog. So, I'm instituting "Girlie Thursdays," where I will do a post on our little Ju-ju. I'm sure I'll be just as good about posting as I am for Wednesday Will-isms, which is to say, not good at all. But, we'll see how it goes.

To start off, this week's post is about Julia's first haircut! Her hair had been getting a little mullet-esque and was kind of stringy and wild. So, even though I eventually want it to grow, I thought it was time for a trim. On Sunday, we took both of the kids to one of those walk-in haircut places, since I have no idea where one should go to get a little girl's hair cut. But, it turned out fine! It actually turned out great! Will went first and did a great job being very still and patient. Each time he gets his hair cut, I feel like he looks more and more like a big boy (combined with the fact that he gets taller and skinnier every day!) Then it was Julia's turn, and I prepared myself for disaster. The (male) stylist cutting their hair didn't seem too warm and fuzzy or very good with kids, so I had visions of tantrums and chunks of hair on the floor, but we persevered. Apparently, I neglected to factor in the power of the sucker. The sucker was key--she ate it happily and didn't pay too much attention to the strange man with scissors near her head. And just like that, it was over, and she had an adorable new bob! I knew that she shape was much better, but I couldn't believe the difference it made to her "look," and I couldn't believe how many of the teachers at school commented it on it (positively). So sweet! Here are some pics of the big event. I don't have a good "after" shot yet because Julia doesn't cooperate with the picture taking these days. Hopefully, I'll get one soon so you can see the adorableness in action.

As a side note to this post, Julia has become very interested in her hair, in general. She often requests a "air-bow" and if she sees her barrettes, she wants to wear those, too. She is not dissuaded if she already has a barrette or bow in her hair, she's fine with wearing multiple at once. It's part the look she's developing. I'm sure it will be all the rage soon.

Eighteen Months!

Julia turned eighteen months a couple of weeks ago. That's right...eighteen months! How did we get here? If anyone tries to call Julia a baby these days, Will quickly corrects them and says, "No, she's a toddler!" And, he's right! She is in full-force toddler mode. She knows what she wants, but can't express it. Or, she doesn't know what she wants, and this makes her mad. And, her teeth are STILL working to come in. All of these combine to create a force of nature; I think she must be very advanced, as she seems to be hitting the "terrible twos" a bit early! For example, on Sunday afternoon when she was supposed to be napping, Julia was screaming her head off instead. And when no one came to her rescue quickly enough, she took off her pants and her (dirty) diaper, and threw them both on the floor. Luckily, it was easily cleaned up, she went to sleep after that incident, and Will thought it was the best story ever.

In general, she just has this look about her that lets you know she's trouble. She still throws her food and is very particular about what she will and won't eat. She's learned how to say "no" to accompany the vigorous head shaking--as if that wasn't clear enough. On certain occasions, if she doesn't like what you've picked out for her to wear, she will actually try to take it off (all while screaming "no, no, no!"), while you're trying to force it over her head. I thought we had a bit more time before she had an opinion on what to wear! She's also still in a bit of a hitting phase, although it seems that she often hits in order to be able to offer a hug afterwards. We've tried to explain that the hitting isn't a prerequisite, but she insists. When we put her in time out, she just gets up. If we speak sharply to her, she burst into tears, as if we have just slapped her across the face. In short, she's got us wrapped around her finger--and SHE KNOWS IT.

But, just as she offers some of our greatest frustrations right now, she also offers some of our greatest joys. Like when I pick her up to give her a hug, and she rubs or pats my back. Like the way she blows kisses, or wants to give each person in the family a kiss--on the arm, of all places. Or how she knows which books she likes, and requests "Moon" each night. And the way she's starting learning some of her friends' names from school--and will "tell" us about them when she gets home. The little smile that lights up a room. The big personality in an eighteen-month body. She is so precious--frustrations and all. As much as I lament this stage, I will be sad when it is over. When she's too busy for me to hold her. When she no longer requests to "rock" each night. Many days it's hard to savor each moment, but I'm doing my best. I know they'll be gone too fast.

Super hero of all things pink

Just a Regular Morning

What? You mean you don't eat your breakfast wearing Santa pajamas and a big, blue Easter bunny hat? Why not? Why wouldn't you start your week like this?

Girlie-Girl or Tomboy?

I'm not sure yet if Julia will be a girlie-girl or a tomboy. On one hand, she's very into the girlie, and can be a drama queen at times (like when she falls to the floor when something doesn't go her way).

Dressing Up:

Taking care of baby (not sure if you can tell, but she's giving the baby milk from her sippy cup):

But, on the other hand, she's not afraid to get rough and tumble with the boys. She is "miss independent" and takes care of herself. She's constantly falling down and bumping some body part, but she usually jumps right back up, without even a cry.

Wrestling with her brother:

With this combination of girlie and tough, I think she'll likely end up like Mary Poppins: "Practically perfect in every way." She already is in my eyes.

Brotherly (and Sisterly) Love

My mom recently told me that one of her clients told her that she could count on one hands the number of times her mother hugged her. I found this so unbelievably sad, and it really stuck with me. Of course, that's probably at least partially why she is now one of my mom's clients.

Fortunately, this is not the case in our house. We are a very affectionate family--always hugging, kissing, saying 'I love you.' I wouldn't have it any other way. And luckily, the children are even affectionate towards each other, at least most of the time. Sometimes Julia will stop what she's doing and run over to Will to give him a hug. Each morning when we drop them off for school and each evening when we pick them up, they give each other a hug, and Will kisses Julia on the top of the head. Their teachers say that if they happen to see each other during the day, they do the same thing. It's the sweetest thing you've ever seen, and it's a surefire way to melt my heart. So, I thought I'd share a few pictures of the lovefest at our house. Note that sometimes the love can get a little aggressive:

Halloween

I know I've been a bad blogger, but it just seems that life has gotten in the way. That's one thing I often struggle with--whether I should be spending time documenting life, rather than just living it. And lately, we've been doing a lot of living, but not much documenting. But, that's about to change. I'm making a pledge right now that I am going to attempt to blog every day between now and Christmas. I have no doubt that the content will be mediocre, at best, but at least I will have a record of what's been going on. Because, I really do love going back and reading my old entries, particularly now that Julia is the same age as Will was when I was first blogging. So, go ahead and take guesses on how many days I will miss, but I'm going to give it a shot! (And, if you ever read and wanted to comment, that would really give me some motivation!)

ANYWAY...onto my first post in my blogging blast...Halloween 2009! Will was a knight (complete with a black and blue and bloody eye) and Julia was a butterfly. They were too cute! We went over to Norman for trick-or-treating over there (the Petreys were in town and Will couldn't wait to hang out with Coleman), and then came back to our street for a little partying with our neighbors. Will really understood the concept of trick-or-treating this year, and he LOVED all of his candy. Julia kept up for a while, but then was content to sit in the stroller and eat a sucker (and go to bed early when we got home). Here are a few pictures...only two weeks late:

This was as long as she kept the hat on all night.

Vicious Knight

Social Butterfly

Ring Pops

Fall Fun

This past weekend we took Will to Old Baker Farm, which is a working farm about 30 minutes from Birmingham that has a pumpkin patch and hay rides. Sunday was a beautiful day, so we met some of Will's friends from school out at the farm, and they had a blast! It was very idyllic...the bright blue sky, happy children running around, bales of hay, fresh pumpkins. Will went to the petting zoo, climbed the hay bales, and even rode a horse! He also loved the tractor ride out to the pumpkin patch and had a great time picking out his own pumpkin (although he kept changing his mind). Here are a few pictures from the gorgeous day--it was such a fun time.