July 31

Since one of the major purposes of this blog is to document how these kiddos grow, I'm excited that today I get to share with you three of Caleb's favorite things:

schoolbuses

motorcycles

our neighbor, Drew

Our church happens to meet at a local high school.

That high school happens to have schoolbuses.

Caleb happens to love schoolbuses.

So every Sunday, without fail, we visit the buses after church. Chris and Caleb walk over to the buses, while I take Daisy to the car, then drive over to pick the boys up. Every Sunday, I wish that I had brought my camera, because Caleb loves the buses so much. Today, my wish was granted!

He. Loves. Buses.

This afternoon, as we returned from a shopping excursion, Caleb noticed that our neighbor was out washing his motorcycle. He immediately shouted, "There's DREW!"

I asked him, "What is Drew doing, Caleb?"

"Checking his motorcycle."

Close enough, kiddo.

Chris and Caleb went over to chat with Drew, and for the very first time, Drew let Caleb sit on his bike. 

Caleb was in little boy heaven.

What a happy guy! And what a great neighbor we have!

I'm not sure if it's just because of the motorcycle, or if it's also because Drew is a fun guy, but Caleb loves him. Several times each day, Caleb will gaze out our front window, looking for Drew. Every motorcycle is Drew's motorcycle; every loud noise is also Drew's motorcycle. 

These two guys are BFF!

On to other topics...

Chris and I will celebrate our 9th wedding anniversary on Tuesday. Last year, I realized that now that we have kids, I'm not really interested in quiet, romantic dinners. All I really want is to re-visit the park where Chris and I were married, have a relaxing family picnic, and take a family photo or two.

Unfortunately, our anniversary is on a weekday, and Chris is running low on vacation days.

Also unfortunately, we chose to get married in August, when things are HOT!

So we compromised by having a breakfast picnic a few days before our anniversary.

Here's Caleb in front of the big tree.

Remember how cute he was in front of the tree last year? No? It looked like this:

Now here's sweet Miss Daisy in front of the tree: 

(I can't help it; there's something about the contrast of small baby/big tree, young human/old tree that I just love!)

Our family + old tree.

(Many thanks to my mom for sweating herself silly to take these photos for us!)

In the background is the gazebo where we were married nine years ago. We've come a long way, and we are so thankful that God has protected, guided, and blessed us in all of our adventures. Here's to many more years to come!

July 30

Weekends are the best.

On the weekend, scenes like this are commonplace:

Chris: "Surprise!"

Caleb: (sprays Chris with hose)

Repeat scene.

Don't mess with Caleb. He's a master sprayer.

This giant beach ball was a $2.50 find at Target. After the boys spent all morning rolling on it and tossing it and chasing it, I'd call that $2.50 well spent!

Daisy and I just laughed at their antics.

(Yep, that's her in her usual place - lounging in the shade on the patio table!)

At bedtime, Daisy and I had a fun photo shoot. The pictures were all so cute; I had a terrible time deciding which to post!

"Hooray! I love being naked!"

(and the legs kick gleefully)

Tomorrow Chris and I will celebrate our 9th wedding anniversary a few days early with a family picnic in the park where we were married. Since it's been sinfully hot out lately, we'll have to enjoy a breakfast picnic. Still, it should be fun all the same!

July 29

I should be asleep right now, but Chris and Daisy are snuggling in bed and I don't want to disturb their adorable cuddling/sleeping session. So instead, here are today's highlights:

Caleb and his "coffee". I think I've mentioned it before - the kid thinks warm milk with a little bit of honey is coffee. Every morning, it's the first thing he asks for. After he has his coffee, he's good to go.  What a funny boy.

This morning, Daisy fell asleep while playing with her dangly toys. I wasn't even ignoring her; one moment, she was batting at the duck, and the next, she was out cold. I suppose the picture is only funny/noteworthy because it so rarely happens that my babies fall asleep while playing. Usually, at the first sign of tiredness, I swaddle them and pop them in the crib, so I never get to see them asleep in their natural habitat.

Caleb made another leap in his drawing skills today. He used to just randomly scribble all over the page when he colored. But today, I showed him how I color in just one part of the picture, like just Elmo's nose. Then I left him to his own devices. When I returned, I saw four distinct blue scribbles, one on each picture of Cookie Monster. It's so cool to see progress like that within a five minute period!

July 28

Between morning stuff and lunchtime and three-hour naps and grocery shopping and dinner, I didn't manage to take any pictures today until right before bedtime. And since Caleb was busy running around like a madman (that's what he and Chris do before bedtime. Not sure why. But they do.), he missed out on getting his picture taken today.

Daisy, however, cooperated beautifully.

My mom's friend Susan found this sweet little dress (with embroidered daisies!) for Daisy. I was instantly smitten by it.

Daisy seemed to like it, too!

(I think she knew  how cute she looked. That's the only thing that could explain that face.)

July 27

Today, more tantrums. Tantrums like you would not believe. Screaming. Crying. Kicking. Hitting anything in sight. (What is it with this kid and hitting? How does he come by it? We haven't hit or spanked him, and he's not in regular contact with other kids who might hit; why does he naturally want to hit when he gets mad?)

I am exhausted.

And yet, after the storm passes, I have a sweet, smart, funny, cooperative little boy. It's so confusing, and frustrating. But thanks to friends like Amber and Sara, I know that this is normal. Still, feel free to encourage me every now and then that this is normal and it will pass? I need to hear it.

Caleb in a non-fussing moment:

Out on the patio, he put on my gardening gloves, then immediately turned to the garden and said, "You gonna pull up weeds?"

Despite all of Caleb's mood swings, Daisy continues to be sweet and calm. 

This one reminds me of this one of Caleb:

Caleb was almost four months old in this one; Daisy is almost three months old. Funny, isn't it?

She was all smiles and giggles, because she knew today was Daddy's 30th birthday.

Chris and Daisy even got to have a nice long chat before we left for his birthday dinner. My mom came out to watch the kiddos while Chris and I dined sans children. It was pretty fantastic.

Daisy clearly thinks her Daddy is fantastic, too. Happy 30th birthday to the best husband and father I could have ever hoped for! Your family loves you, Chris!

July 26

This was another one of those days. You know, a day when it's hard to determine if it was a success or a failure.

Success:

Car licensed for the next two years

Daisy weighs 11 pounds, 4 ounces!

Caleb was funny and Daisy was cheerful

Dinner was crock-pot-o-riffic

Failure:

2 trips to the DMV to successfully license the car

45 minutes in the car to get Daisy's weight, and Babymoon was out of the item that justified the trip

Caleb had several meltdowns, including one involving hitting me and a timeout

Chris got home an hour late, so it was a great thing that dinner was in the slow cooker

Chris' 30th birthday is tomorrow, and I have nothing for him. Not even a cake.

My head hurts

See what I mean? I think my headache means today falls into the failure category. Or maybe I should just create a third category: Meh.

I think I like that solution best.

Here are my cute kids.

Daisy wore a really cute new outfit from her Grandmother today. It was awesome, until she had a poopy diaper and I somehow managed to smear the poop on the outfit. See? Failure day.

But Daisy was cheerful and content all day. And did I mention the 11 pounds, 4 ounces part? Yay, Daisy!

Caleb is a bargain shopper who is always prepared for rain. He's just that kind of a guy.

This is Caleb's home-made "rescue pack".

Thanks to GREAT Aunt Maggie, Caleb is obsessed with Diego. And Diego has an orange backpack named Rescue Pack, which has its own snazzy little jingle. And Caleb LOVES it.

So today, Caleb happened upon a soft, clear plastic box that a gift had come in. He held it up to me, gave me this sorrowful look, and said, "Wear it ON back?"

How could I say no? I had to find a way for him to wear it on his back! All of my mom-cred hinged on this moment.

I switched into Mom-MacGyver mode, and the wheels started turning in my head. I grabbed a length of ribbon and my stapler and... voila! A rescue pack!

He immediately put his toy camera inside (Diego has a camera named Click) and walked (very carefully) all over the living room. I say it's a pretty passable rescue pack, and he was pleased. Too bad it doesn't sing the snazzy jingle!

So we'll end on a success, and not talk about the tantrums. OK?

July 25

God must have been feeling especially generous when He gave us Daisy, because she's a pretty fantastic little girl. One of the ways she's especially fantastic is her sleep habits. This girl has been sleeping through the night since she was four weeks old. What baby does that? Our baby. Also, Caleb takes one nap a day; it typically lasts two to three hours. Daisy seems to have picked up on that, and now she sleeps for 45 minutes in the morning, then three to four hours while Caleb sleeps.

That means that on most days, I have both children sleeping - at the same time! - for at least an hour and a half. It's amazing. Today, both babies were asleep for three straight hours. Caleb woke up first, so we snuggled, read, changed his diaper, and did all of the normal post-nap things. Right as we were getting ready to head downstairs, Daisy woke up. So Caleb and I climbed into the big bed and had some snuggle time with Daisy.

It was the best part of my day.

I set Caleb down on the bed, and he immediately crawled over to Daisy, laid down, and wiggled until he was snuggled right up next to her.

Then he sat up and poked her mouth.

Apparently, that was pretty funny, because he did it over and over. And each time, he laughed hysterically.

Then he laid back down, and Daisy snuggled into him.

Finally we got around to un-swaddling her, and she gave a BIIIIG stretch.

Caleb, meanwhile, decided that by throwing his arms behind him, he was able to fly. This was also quite entertaining.

We spent the next 45 minutes playing in bed: Caleb covered and un-covered his legs with the sheets, pretended he was Diego climbing a mountain, imagined he was diving into a deep pool of water, and always came back to give his sister snuggles and kisses.

I am blessed beyond belief!

July 24

We did three days' worth of stuff today, and managed to have a little bit of fun, too. That's what I call a good day! Too bad tomorrow is Monday, and we have to send Chris off to work.

This girl has had a busy week! In the past week, she has started batting at toys, started clasping her hands together, and now, today, she...

ROLLED OVER!

As a matter of full disclosure, I will say that she started her rolls with one arm already underneath her. I suppose that gives her a bit of leverage, or a more favorable angle for rolling. If she's propped up on both elbows, she can't yet figure out how to get her arms in the right position for a roll. But if I help her get positioned, she can roll like a pro!

The kiddos and I got some quality snuggle/play time while Daddy hung some art in Caleb's room.

For Caleb's birthday, our gift to him (in addition to Fredbird, of course) was two prints by photographer Don Hamerman. We gave him this one:

and this one:

 Gotta love 20x200 for starting our little boy's art collection!

(These two photos are both by Don Hamerman and were taken from 20x200's website.)

Then before bedtime, Caleb threw off his clothes to reveal his alter-ego:

Super Naked Boy!

Amber made this awesome cape for Caleb's birthday. I can attest to the fact that when Caleb wears it, he runs faster and flys higher. It is a true superhero cape!

July 23

I'm going to be honest here. Our house looks like a toy factory exploded, raining down bits and pieces of fun and colorful debris all over our living room. Just thinking about cleaning it up makes me feel exhausted, so I think I'll leave the mess for tomorrow. Luckily, our week of mayhem is almost over, and then we can get back to life as normal.

Except for Chris' 30th birthday.

And our anniversary.

And then we want to try listing our home for sale on Craigslist.

It never ends, does it? At least we're having fun along the way.

This morning, Caleb finished opening the gifts from his birthday party.

Among them was this gift from us: a stuffed Fredbird doll. Caleb was instantly in love.

Fredbird helped him open the rest of his gifts.

(See his hand tearing open the package?)

Fredbird joined him for storytime with Daddy and Daisy.

(See his little legs underneath the book?)

Fredbird watched through the window while Caleb played outside, then joined Caleb for naptime. Luckily, Caleb was willing to leave Fredbird at home while we celebrated our third birthday party in three days. This time, the celebration was for Princess Mary!

Mary turned three today, and chose to celebrate with an ice cream social.

Good choice, Mary!

Caleb joined Mary's little brother, Michael, on the piano, where they played some lovely duets. (Caleb may have been taking the lead on the vocals here.)

Princess Mary is now also Doctor Mary. She thoughtfully checked her Mommy's blood pressure. If her Mommy is anything like me, hosting a birthday party sent it sky-high!

Then she checked her own.

(These toys literally haven't changed since I was a child. Unless they have, and this is the "retro" set. In that case, I am officially old.)

Mary's big sister, Catherine, was so excited to hold Daisy. You can tell she's an experienced big sister, becasue she did a great job with the baby!

After the festivities were over, we headed home for dinner. Caleb was feeling especially kind tonight, and made sure Daisy had a sandwich from his new wooden sandwich-making kit. What infant wouldn't be excited to eat a nice, big sandwich? Too bad it's made of wood. Sorry, Daisy. Maybe tomorrow.

And then it was bedtime, and Caleb's faithful friend joined him for bedtime stories and snuggles.

Good night, Fredbird.