Life Lately

I love these boys. They adore each other. Archie is nearly as big as Carter! My mom bought them matching Elmo pajamas and I couldn't resist taking a million pictures. (Even though they are 2 years apart, Archer is in 12 month pjs and Carter is still in 18-24 month pjs!)

Archer is 5 months old now. He sits up by himself and rolls from tummy to back and back to tummy. I wanted to wait the full 6 months before I started him on solids but he is just so eager to eat! This is his face after his first bite of cereal:

Carter's new BFF is Willow, my mom's puppy. She is adorable and the two of them are inseparable.

Weekend Away

We took a mini vacation. . . to Palmdale! We got to attend my step-brother's wedding. It was such fun and it's always great to see two people in love and eager to start their lives together! They look perfect together.

It was a bit interesting attending a wedding with a 2 year old and 4 month old... I had to quickly escape twice during the ceremony as Archer was very chatty, fussy, and terrified by applause! I was unsure how we would sleep that night (all four of us in the same room). Carter was so exhausted that he didn't make a peep but I had to listen to a snoring husband and deal with a hungry baby all night. It was great to see my dad--wish we could see him more!

Spring Is Here!

What have we been up to lately? Seems like each crazy day just blurs into the next. Carter has graduated into a booster seat and now sits at the kitchen table with us. Not sure if it is the new booster chair or what but he has definitely started eating more. (Still picky but at least he is eating!) He is obsessed with my camera and loves taking pictures. The only problem is when I get my camera back there are a million pictures of the ground, his feet, the couch, etc. Carter also started an art class this week. Today he got to use finger paints, sculpt with playdough, glue paper, sticks, and blocks onto paper, and color a picture with markers by spinning paper on a wheel. He was in heaven and I had to literally pry him out of his chair when it was time to go!

Archer is now 4 months old and is as tall (and weighs more) than Carter at 9 months old! He weighs 15 lbs 10 oz. We lovingly call him "Beast." He still has his dual personality--he is either smiley and happy or very angry. Luckily the very angry side only comes out once in awhile so overall we have a very easy baby!

I started taking a yoga class one night a week. Not sure Dave likes having both kids by himself but I am thrilled to have an hour to myself!

Lovin' Life

On our way to Disneyland!

Life around here has been a bit crazy. I feel like I never get a moment to rest or even to just stop going going going! These boys are a full-time job but adding my other job on top of it all (not to mention cooking, cleaning, laundry, shopping...) whew! I am exhausted and sometimes feel like I am losing my mind... but I am happy.

Archer is now 3 months old! And he is HUGE. Seriously. He is as big as Carter was at 9 months. He is already outgrowing 6 month clothes. Archer has developed quite the personality. When he is happy, he is such a joy to be around. He coos and laughs and kicks his legs and his smile makes me want to cry it is so darn cute. But when he is mad... it's like he is a different baby! Carter never cried like Archer does. I take it back--Archer doesn't cry--he literally screams his head off. I need to record it. He balls his hands into tight little fists, sticks out his bottom lip, turns bright red, and screams. It breaks my heart because I try to soothe him but I think he just likes to scream to get out his frustration because after 10 minutes or so (sometimes longer!), he snuggles up in my arms, sighs, and falls asleep. It's very strange and a bit stressful so I am hoping it is just a phase.

As for Carter, I think he has realized that Archer is here to stay. I think he feels neglected at times since he used to get 100% of our attention. He is talking so much lately! He loves to repeat things that he hears (which can be a bit embarrassing at times!) He makes me extremely aware of the phrases that Dave and I use a lot because he now runs around the house saying things like, "So cool," "Stop it!", "Awww so sweet," but the most annoying one is he now screams, "Chrissssssy!" whenever he wants me.

Dish soap, a straw to make bubbles, and a pan can provide hours of entertainment.

Mickey Mouse needed a bath.

Happy Birthday Dave!

We didn't manage to do much for Dave's birthday but we did have a few sweet moments. He got to wake up and snuggle with two adorable boys who were well behaved all day (that was definitely a gift to us both!) Carter helped me bake a red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting and we made chicken fajitas for dinner. Then Dave, Carter, and Archer had a little dance party. After cake and ice cream, the kids and I went to bed. Dave got to watch basketball in a quiet house (that's a first!) We are planning on going back to Disneyland soon to really celebrate. I can't believe my husband is *gasp* 32 years old! Where does the time go?! I captioned a program on marriage yesterday that really spoke to me. The main message was that while it is important for wives to love their husbands, it is just as important for wives to respect their husbands. I got a little teary because I do respect my husband and I guess that makes me a lucky wife! I respect him as the leader of our family. He is an awesome husband and a wonderful father and I am still overwhelmed with love when I think about him. I miss him all day when he is at work and am so excited to see him walk through the door every night. Love stories are not just for books and movies... I feel like I am living my own love story each and every day. Cheesy, yes... but happily true.

Brotherly Love

My boys love each other. Archer is fascinated with Carter and Carter is always searching the house for Baby Archie, making sure he is okay. If Archer crys, Carter runs to me and says, "He is sad!!!" But these brothers are already giving me a run for my money. They are angels at times but when they are naughty it seems to coincide. They both refuse to nap on the same days or while in a restaurant last night Archer screamed his head off (apparently he had to burp really bad and I couldn't figure this out... duh Mom!) Since Archer was getting all the attention, Carter promptly stuck his hand down his own throat and threw up his dinner all over himself. We got quite a few stares from the fellow restaurant goers. Oh well. As embarrassed as I was I am sure I will encounter many more events like this one. It's character building, right?

And lastly, Archer's Tummy Time Success!

Disneyland!!!

We finally got Disneyland annual passes again and took the kids for the very first time on Sunday. Dave and I love Disneyland and have so many fun memories there since we have had annual passes for many years but the last time we went was on our anniversary in 2010, so almost exactly 2 years ago. I felt a little nervous about the day and wondered how it would go. It was absolutely perfect! It was raining when we arrived which was a bummer but as soon as we got to the entrance it stopped and didn't rain at all until we got in the car to leave that night! Our original plan was to go early and come home after lunch so the boys could nap in the car but after Pirates of the Carribean (yes, I took my 2 month old baby on it despite feeling a bit anxious about it. He snuggled up against me in the baby carrier and slept through the whole thing so whew!)... after the ride both boys fell asleep immediately so Carter napped in the stroller while we ate a very leisurely lunch and when he woke up, he was ready to explore some more so we ended up staying till 6pm. (I don't think I have ever in my life been that exhausted!)

Carter loved Disneyland but did NOT love the characters. He was fine when viewing them from a distance but did not want them to touch him (You will see his reaction when Donald Duck touched his hand!) Dave took Carter on the Roger Rabbit ride and we did a few rides in Bugs Land. We ate a lot (at least Dave and I did!) and walked around both parks. I took Carter into Mickey's house, which he liked but I think he was a little nervous to be around so many people. I think his absolute favorite was the animation room in California Adventure. They have different containers with cartoon pictures that you can spin and watch them animate (kind of like a flip book.) He was in heaven!

Aimee and Torrey met us there to help wrangle our little monkeys and Archer loved being carried and snuggled all day instead of sitting alone in the stroller. As we left, we shared a cup of hot cocoa or as Carter likes to call it "coffee." He took a big swallow and shouted DEEEEWICIOUS. What a way to end a perfect day. When we got home I was so tired and I thought for sure that Archer would be up all night since he slept most of the day but to my surprise we both fell asleep at 8:30PM and didnt wake up till 1:45AM. It was glorious!

I can't get enough of the picture below. I laugh every time I look at it!

So apparently when there isn't a mirror around, Carter likes to have heated conversations with his shadow:

It's days like yesterday that make me realize how much I adore my family and how wonderful my life really is and how much I have to be thankful for.