2 Boys and Their Donuts

A peaceful afternoon treat...Andrew promptly stuffed the first donut in his mouth and then analyzed the bag closure system, trying to find a way to get more donuts!

Cold Day at the top of Stone Mountain!

The kids were out of school for Columbus Day, so we recruited some friends to head to Stone Mountain with us. Little did they know that it would be so chilly!
(Naomi is in the green coat, Gabe is in the red coat, and Andrew is in the blue coat.)

Undaunted by the cold, we still scaled the mountain (or rode the sky lift up) and admired the sweeping vistas (the kids immediately spotted McDonald's). Children ran, fell, jumped, cried, ate crackers, followed the white lines, giggled, complained, and had a fun time!

Observation Day @ Ballet School

Naomi's high level of enthusiasm for dance + the thrill of having an audience = recipe for a fantastic parent observation day in ballet class!

First time in 9 years of marriage...

A valuable lesson indeed: check the clipper attachment before putting blade to skin.

Post-Game

Gabe is loving soccer! He literally vibrates with excitement before and after practices (1 a week) and games. (Did you catch the word "literally"? Because I'm quite serious!)
I had thought about waiting until January to sign him up since there was a late registration fee of $20 we had to pay. It's the absolute BEST $20 we've ever spent!! The look on his face when any soccer topic arises is repayment enough.

Caterpillars with Daddy!

Games with Gabe!

This was last Saturday, after Gabe's soccer game. He picked a game to play with me, and his choice was Carcassonne, or the map game as he refers to it. "Silly rules", of course (his code for not following the regular rules!).

The (Unexpected) Adventure of the Day!

It's been raining, though, so there were fun puddles for Andrew's splashing pleasure!

Soccer boy!

 

Why does our soccer-crazy 4 year old,

who has been so eagerly anticipating his first soccer practice,

look completely dejected at the end of the first practice?

 

Because the practice session had to end, of course!

Cement Truck Love

We are locked out of the house AND car. Luckily there is a cement truck down the street, which is pure entertainment. (Note Andrew is sporting a cement truck shirt and clutching (any guesses??)...yes, a cement truck toy!

Our Sunday

The boys stayed home from church, still recuperating. Naomi's church class got bags of playdough, and she asked and was allowed to bring an extra bag home for Gabe. (Sweet of her! Or perhaps it was so Gabe wouldn't beg for part of hers...we'll take it either way!)  Anyway, Naomi molded two birds, complete with tail feathers and nests!

Here is Andrew, moments after getting numbing eardrops. He's supposed to lay still. :)

Solution: that infamous explorer and her fellow conspirator, the monkey. Yes, our son is head over heels for Dora. It kept a 2 year-old's head on a pillow for a few minutes, anyway!

And if you noticed Andrew is wearing the same clothes as in yesterday's post, be kind in your thoughts. We're just happy we haven't chucked him out the window from all the crying!

Andrew Turns 2!

Today our Andrew Frederick turned 2 years old! Unfortunately, he's pretty fussy from the ear infections and we've had a few rough days. 

It worked out, though...he loved his presents, to the tune of dancing and shrieking about them.

And when a mom is too tired and frazzled and emotionally spent to prepare festivities, Chili's will provide your child with dessert, a scary song (think small 2 year old surrounded by tall adults loudly clapping and screeching a strange song - TERRIFYING!) and balloons. Instant party!

Day of Doubles!

Two sweet boys visited the doctor today.

TWO double ear infections (the doctor expressed amazement at how bad the infections were!).

Two copays ($35 each) paid and to be paid again in 10 days for the recheck.

Two prescriptions apiece (sinus infections, also).

And two suckers, which put smiles back on their faces!

Sometimes this is the only way a mama can squish some exercise into the schedule! 

My kids love hopscotch!

Hair!

Naomi was home with the sniffles today, and we had a great time together! (My selective memory allows me to skip over Gabe throwing up and Andrew screaming a lot because he has a cold and isn't sleeping well.)

We even stopped by the salon and got Naomi's hair trimmed. (That was BEFORE the vomit and screaming episodes...I'm ambitious, but not insane!) She got a couple inches taken off. Naomi LOVES being pampered!

Family Movie Night

Last month I read "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" to Naomi and Gabe, and tonight we're watching the movie, complete with cheers and occasional raucous laughter at slapstick!

Sock Hop!

We attended a crazy sock hop on Saturday. Even Andrew loved it and trotted around to the music!

Gabe is sporting his favorite socks, green with spiderwebs and sparkly spiders on them. Be not surprised if, on Sundays, you catch a glimpse of green between the hem of his church pants and the tops of his shoes.

AND...sometimes all you get when taking pictures are outtakes!

Friday Doin's with the Gabe-man!

The Rest of Us!

And what did the rest of us do on that first day of school?? Well...Andrew feasted on watermelon cubes covered in chocolate pudding (his own concoction!) and Gabe discovered that my phone's camera can take pictures out either side.

First Day of School!

Naomi's first day of 1st grade was on Monday, and she's enjoyed this week! We were unsure what time to expect the bus that first morning, though, and so were quite early. We were out there waiting at least 20 minutes, and Naomi, being ever dramatic, alternated between excitement and despair that the bus would NEVER. COME!!