2 More Weeks of 2016

This year flew by. I don't think I wrote about nearly enough memories this year. Nor did I take nearly enough photographs. I will try to make up for it in 2017. It will have to become a goal. My boys have grown so much. I'm trying not to miss a beat, but I feel like I always am.

Apollo is running, per usual, and developing his toddler body (and personality). We are officially in the lay on the floor upset stage. This is where life truly gets interesting and the personality of toddlers really start to shine. Though it isn't the most pleasant as a parent (insert dirty looks here), I kind of enjoy this stage when not in the moment. I know he is just learning and doesn't know how to handle all the stimulation around him and the emotions he is feeling. It is going to be a learning experience for everyone.

On a happier side, he goes up and down the slide on his own. Yes, he was doing that before. Now he isn't scared to go down on his bum. Before, he would turn himself around so he could slide down on his tummy. He was too afraid of going down on his bum due to the lack of self balance. Now, he is perfectly fine going down on his bum without the fear of falling back and hitting his head. He is also into climbing the dining room chairs. He can climb right onto the seat. He likes to climb up and play with anything on the table or desk. I've caught him on the table a few times too. We try to discourage that.

Lucian has been pretty amazing. He has been reading signs here and there, drawing pictures, and making sound connections. I have changed up his learning a bit to get there. Before, we were always talking about letters and sounds of those letters. Now, I pick a few letters that sound similar or that is difficult for him and put them next to a vowel. We ignore any two letter words that sound differently and concentrate solely on the sounds they make. It has made an amazing difference. He figured out that he could make new words by adding letters to the end. He also used the idea of "sounding out" to figure out small words. We do this constantly and it has been great. Yesterday, we were in one of our old favorite stores (it's closing) and we were looking at a few things. He read two signs while we were in there. One said apple and had a picture of an apple on it. The other said go and was just green. He was carrying around a legal pad and pen that we were making notes on. The next thing we knew he was showing us a picture he drew of an apple and wrote apple next to. I was very impressed. And almost in tears. We have worked so hard, and it's showing. Then he looked at the sign that said go. He kind of spelled it out and looked at me. "Go?" he asked. I assured him he was correct, and gave him a big hug. Those are the moments I cherish. An hour or so of chaos with this one beautiful moment squeezed in between. He is learning, he is growing, and I am helping him achieve that.

I have some amazing kids. Even when they are angry, ungrateful, or annoying. They are truly amazing, and can achieve amazing things.

Birthday Boys and Halloween

This year has flown by! I cannot believe Apollo is officially a one year old and Lucian is six years old. They have grown so much this last year. One is turning into a toddler and the other has turned into a small child. I'm afraid to blink at this point. I might miss them turning into adults.

Lucian is six, wow, six. He started school this year. He is learning to read, write, and speak. His language skills have improved. I've been working with him on making difficult sounds, writing letters, and increasing his vocabulary. He isn't enthusiastic about reading, but he will listen to a book if I make him. He likes to have fun and play games. I have been trying to make educational games for him to work on different concepts. He recently learned the game "horse". Now that we have a little basketball net inside (thanks Grammy), we've been getting creative. Lucian likes video games. He is a gamer to the heart. He likes to play minecraft, online computer games, kirby, mario bros games, plants vs zombies, and, most recently, smash brothers. I think he is more technological than I am. That's ok with me. I've accepted my fate! At least I will have someone to teach me gaming lingo.

Current favorites:
Food: Tacos
Drink: Apple Juice
Game:  Video: Minecraft  Board: Candyland
Color: All the colors of the rainbow except green, yellow, and black
Book: Five little pumpkins, Speedy little Racecars, Where's Waldo
Thing to do: Play video games


Apollo is quite the spunky one year old. He likes to crawl, climb, and is almost walking. He has done at least 10 consecutive steps by himself. He is very independent. Apollo loves to be outdoors. Now that he can communicate a little bit (he points, grunts and shakes his head), he often points to the door. He also crawls to the door whenever it is opened. The toddler ATV we've had since Lucian was little is one of his favorite things to do. Now he also enjoys playing in the ball pit (a nice step up from my makeshift cardboard one), climb up the slide and go backwards down on his belly, and push cars around. It is nice to have something to do other than going up and down the stairs all day.  Plus, Lucian likes to play in the ball pit with him, and he likes playing with his big brother.  He is also a huge foodie. If you have it he wants it. He likes to try things that aren't considered food as well. He was devouring his cupcake on their birthday before we were done singing "Happy Birthday". That's pretty good, though, because he was waiting to eat it all day. He ate the entire thing too. He may have even asked for a second.

Current Favorites:
Food: bread and noodles
Drink: coconut water
Game: Peek a boo
Color: seems to be green
Book: Anything with pages
Thing to do: Throw things down the stairs, climb things

The boys had a great birthday. We celebrated at home on their actual birth date. We had cupcakes, chocolate coins, balloons with toys in them (requested yearly by Lucian), and all our mario brother plushies. I took a few videos but the pictures weren't coming out with the lighting and fast movements. They loved their cards and gifts and having Grammy visit. The day after, we had a little trampoline jumping party with some of Lucian's friends. Their Nana and Papa came to visit too! It was certainly a busy weekend. We attempted to trunk or treat but it didn't work out (wrong times). But we were able to go out on Halloween and get a decent pile of candy.

This year the boys dressed up as Mario (Lucian) and Luigi (Apollo). I made their outfits as per tradition. We were going to dress up too, but I didn't get to our costumes. Oh well! Next year hopefully. I'm already conjuring ideas.

Thanks for stopping by for an update.  And a big thank you to everyone that called, sent a card or gift, or wished the boys a happy birthday. It's unusual for siblings to share a birthday, and we are trying to figure the whole thing out. So far so good. Now to update the pictures and events!

Summer is Ending

This has been an unusual summer for us. Usually our summers are filled with daily activities. Whether we make trips to the pool, play in the park, pick fruit, or go to a festival, we always seem to have something going on. This summer has been laid back. We haven't been to any pools or splash pads. We only went to one or two festivals. We barely went to the farmer's market. We went to the park a few times and we picked some strawberries. Not our usual summer for sure. Luckily fall is coming upon us and opening up our yearly harvesting fun. There will definitely be plenty of pumpkins outside our door and apple juice in our freezer. Looking forward to some fun in fall.

We did visit one apple orchard this past weekend. After we arrived, we decided not to pick apples. The trees were heavily picked already and it was very muddy from rain. Even though we were all sporting our gum boots (minus Apollo), we thought it best to let the kids play in the play area instead. Even that was difficult with all the mud, but they seemed to have a good time. It made me excited to check out other orchards and, hopefully, pick some delicious apples. I see apple juice, dumplings, and applesauce in our future. It's a good adventure for the whole family. Lucian already enjoys those trips, we hope Apollo will too.

Lucian has been doing well in school. He still gets frustrated when people can't understand him, but he has come a long way. He will soon be starting small speech therapy sessions during school. He has his own accent (kind of british-like, really), but I hope being around all the other kids' accents of his diverse school isn't too much for him. We plan to switch his school for the upcoming year anyway. I just know how hard it is for people not to understand you and to not be patient on either side. It's difficult for him, but I know he's strong and willing. He surprises me every single day. He will be having a field trip coming up next week. They are going to an apple orchard. Joseph is going to chaperone. This will be his first field trip experience with a class. Today is also his first picture day at school. I can't wait to see how he hams it up. Considering how much I photograph him, he is probably a pro. He is getting so big. I can't believe he will be 6 next month. He still enjoys video games, board games, reading books, and watching How it's Made. His favorite color is dark blue. His favorite board game is candyland. He loves to explore and learn. And is still very sociable. He makes lots of "best friends", including Apollo.

Apollo is quite the explorer. He isn't walking by himself yet, but he stands up randomly on his own and crawls very fast. He is very independent. He likes to do things himself and isn't much of a cuddler. Therefore, I must take full advantage when he crawls into my lap to play. He still loves all food. He especially gets upset when you don't share food with him. There isn't too many things that he doesn't like, but he definitely prefers a mix of things and lots of flavor. Apollo is a water baby. He loves anything to do with water. Water tables, pools, fountains, hoses, sinks, baths, and random cups of water. If it has water in it, it isn't sacred or off limits to this kiddo. At least we don't have to convince or force him to take a bath. He is usually willing to jump in. He is at the stage of pushing things around on the floor. His favorite thing to push around is an empty food container. He also likes to push around cars or anything that slides easily. He has also gotten good at stacking things. We were playing in the bathroom sink one day and he grabbed a stack of paper cups that were on the counter. I wasn't surprised to see him pull them off the stack one by one, but was utterly taken aback when I watched him carefully stacked several of them back together with such precision. Seriously, it was impressing. This little guy is going to be one next month. I'm excited for the next phase. but kind of sad to see my baby gone. He's practically a toddler already. We better pick lots of pumpkins to make up for it.

Though summer is coming to an end, great things will be upon us come fall.  I, for one, can't wait to live it up in the beauty of fall. Surround myself with harvested goodies and feast on the bounty!

9 Months Strong For Apollo

It's official. Apollo has reached nine months alive and kicking. He is an eager little dude. Always getting into things, climbing, and trying to eat cat food. I think I will name him Mr. Independent.

So what does the little dude like? Anything he can get into his mouth. He loves food. It would be easier to list things he doesn't like because it's so much shorter. It's hard to say what is favorite foods are so far. If I had to guess I would go with buttered toast, mint, and grapes. He is all about flavor!

He has a developed pincer grip, which he finds very handy when terrorizing the cat food dish. I have removed quite a bit of cat food from his mouth (boy loves flavor). He also uses his new handy skills to try to open things like plastic baggies, boxes, and fruit pouches. Though unsuccessful, I find it quite impressive. 

We are at the stage of dumping and filling. The center of our living space has a bucket full of golf balls. Every day Apollo will make his way to the bucket and empty some of the contents onto the floor. Sometimes he will turn it into a game - roll the ball and chase after it. He is also trying to learn how to put things back into containers. He finds this a little bit more frustrating. I try to show him the they won't stay in while the container is upside down, but he hasn't quite caught on yet. Though he is doing quite a fine job picking up all the dried fruit snacks he dumped all over the floor. Some to eat and some for the bag.

My goodness those teeth! I haven't decided whether this is a good thing or a bad thing yet. But the power of nature that be decided Apollo will have his entire upper jaw protruding teeth at the same time. Poor guy has been teething like crazy. I would say there are at least six working their way through. In a few days time he has gone from two teeth to almost 8ish teeth. I sure will miss that gummy smile!

He isn't walking on his own yet, but is getting braver. He has been crawling for a while now, pulls himself up on anything he can, climbs the stairs like a pro, and has been pushing around the little jeep. Who needs a walker when you have an electric car you can push around? He has let go a few times when standing and has been walking one handed a little bit more frequently than usual. Walking (running) should be coming soon. Maybe not as quick as Lucian did because that boy skipped crawling altogether and only insisted on walking. Oh the joys of spirited and determined children!

Other things he enjoys: playing with the robot remote control (he can do it himself), being outside, playing with water in the sink, climbing on/riding/pushing the little atv jeep, paging through books and getting into his brother's stuff.

Nine months has been fun and way too fast. I can't believe how big he has gotten. as one adventure ends, another arises.

Summer Fun

This past month has been somewhat adventurous. Most of our time outside of the house has been spent in the yard and field. Frisbee, scooters, and balls galore! Apollo and I spend time outside every single day. We walk up and down the street. Sometimes we check the mail multiple times. Mostly, it is the only thing that calms the little guy down. Walking him in our street often puts him down for a nap. He just loves to be outside. Today, he helped me (somewhat) clean out the vacuum. It was a good opportunity to spray himself with the hose and try to eat rocks. Unfortunately, Lucian didn't care to join us in that adventure. Can't say I blame him, but I'm sure he could have gotten creative with the hose as well. We have been getting back into rainbow water, which is always a good time. Especially now that we can be outside with all the messy colors. Plus, we fill all the containers with the hose. He left some completed test tubes outside our front door from this past week and it managed to survive through a few storms (even high winds). It has been harder to get the big guy outside. He thinks it's too hot and too bright outside. It is. Sometimes I can still get him outside. Or make him wear sunglasses.

Poppy came to visit for a bit over a week, which was awesome. Lucian loved every second. He said Poppy is his best friend. They played a lot. He got  lots of needed attention, so thank you Poppy. Plus, that allowed Joe, Apollo, and I to make our trip to Austin. It was very hot, Apollo was overstimulated, and veggies required a search. We had a lot of fun. Apollo did great on the flights, which is good to know. We also managed to break two umbrellas due to wind bursts. In the end, it was worth the trip. I really enjoyed being in that area.

We didn't do any major fireworks on the fourth. That was the day we flew back from Texas, and we all ended up being pretty beat. I think Joe did a few morning glories with the boys. That was about it. Those are my personal favorites anyways. On the other hand, the sound of fireworks went on for about a week before and after the holiday. So, we did get our share of the blasting sound. On the bright side, Southwest gives one complimentary alcoholic beverage on the fourth of July.

And now we are in July. Wohoo! Every year passes faster and faster. Where has the time gone? The boys' birthday is rapidly approaching. Fall should be here before we know it. Lucian starts kindergarten, officially, at the end of July. Apollo is going to be one and walking before I know it. I'm trying to enjoy the time I have with them, but it isn't always easy. Sometimes it is very difficult. On those days, I just look at them when they sleep and smile; knowing we all survived the day and it will all be ok. So when Apollo is screaming hysterically from lack of sleep and digestive issues, Lucian is pretending to decapitate plushies, and the cats are deliberately trying to make me crazy by running at the door and hiding under the car, I know this time will pass and I will look back at it and miss the little things. I'll miss the smile on Apollo's face when he gets to eat something new. I'll miss Lucian calling me a butt head and signing a catchy song about it. I'll miss when Lucian tells me that he loves me forever and wants me to snuggle him. I'll miss when either one gives me a hug for no reason without me having to ask. I'll miss when Lucian tries to trick me into giving him treats because he "wants to share it with" me. I look at them every single day and know I'm blessed with some really special children in my life.  Regardless of the struggles and hard times, we love and appreciate each other. Now if only time could slow down and we could enjoy our happy moments more. I'm afraid I might miss some important moments just by trying to capture them.

Live in the moment, make memories, or the moment will pass you by.

Surviving the Heat

We have survived, so far.  It's been incredibly hot out. Very humid, minimal cloud coverage, and blazing temperatures. Lucian says it's too bright outside! At least it is no longer cold. That's how it is around here: complain about the cold, complain about the hot. Rain and storm weather are the only rejoice. We haven't been caught in any more storms recently, but we certainly have had tornado weather. I like to talk about the weather we experience. I find some of it quite odd. Plus, it is interesting to live in a tornado region where it isn't uncommon to hear sirens go off, to see tornado inducing storms, and super strong winds with freezing sideways rain. I've stayed up some nights just to watch in amazement. It truly is neat.

Ok, back to the boys. Lucian recently went through kinderstart, a two week kindergarten prep class. He liked it. Well as he put it "It's ok for one day". Not sure how he is going to do with 3 more hours of it each day for a full school year. Around here they start at the end of July and get out in, I think, June. It's a very long year for kids, and I don't really the all year round mentality. Kids need summer. They need a break just like adults do. They need to experience being a kid outside of an institution. Every time I go to the school I envision Pink Floyd's 'The Wall'. It truly is fitting. School is nothing like it was when I was a child. We didn't have desks, dress codes, and safe spaces. He did get a cool Minecraft back pack and was able to utilize his R2D2 lunch pail. He made some friends in his class, but he doesn't know any of their names (heh that's my boy). He seems to like his teacher as well, which is good. Right now, the plan is to start again in Fall and see how it goes.  I think it is going to be hard for him to go everyday all day, especially in winter when it gets dark so early. Joseph thinks he will do fine once he gets used to it. I guess I am just unconventional (and nonconforming). Worse comes to worse, I think I could be a really good teacher ;-)

Apollo is Mr. curiosity. He gets into anything he finds. He wants to eat everything too. It he sees food, he wants to try it. He has tried more things than I can count. There is very little that he doesn't like. That kid loves greens. Bitter? No problem, he will eat it. He pulls chard and mint from the garden and eats it. He loves plants and being outside. It makes him so happy. Even more than Lucian at that age. Being outside is instantly calming for him.  I'm starting to wonder if it has something to do with all the time I spent in the garden when I was pregnant with him. We go outside and walk everyday. We check the mail 3-5x a day. The neighbor probably thinks I'm nuts.  But he loves it, so why not? Now if I could only get him to keep a hat on his head. I'm always worried he is going to get burned on his head. He has strawberry blonde hair, so his scalp is still very visible. At the end of June, this little bugger will be 8 months old. He is able to crawl, he has mastered climbing the stairs, he can pull himself into a standing position, and walk with assistance. Lucian was definitely the better walker (he never crawled), but Apollo still loves to move like his brother.

They certainly have brotherly love. Lucian loves to go up to his brother and give him hugs. He has saved him from falling and hurting himself multiple times. He even includes him in games. Apollo gets a huge smile every time he sees his big brother. He always tries to crawl or walk to him. He loves to make his way into Lucian's bedroom to visit. Apollo will definitely be looking up to his brother. Lucian is such a good kid and brother. I don't know how I got so lucky.

We aren't without triumph. We have hard days too. Or, as Lucian puts it, "bad days". Days when Apollo refuses to nap and is cranky all day, or Lucian gets upset because we have to leave the house, or Mama and Daddy are frustrated because we can't get anything done. In the end, it doesn't matter. We are just blessed to have each other and the time we get to spend together. Even if it doesn't turn out the way we hoped!

Lastly, Happy Father's Day to Joseph! The Father of our house and our beautiful boys. Even when we all give him a hard time he is there for us. So thank you, for sticking with us even when the times get tough.

Short Summer is a Bummer

We officially have summer weather, which is very exciting. Unfortunately, summer will be short in this house. Lucian starts kindergarten at the end of July. Yes, they start that early around here. This week and next week is prep class that we signed him up for. It allows kids to meet some of their classmates and to get used to the kindergarten routine. Sadly, none of the schools around here have part time kindergarten unless you go to a private school. So, I guess we will see how it goes. Next option will be homeschooling. They are required to wear a specific uniform per se. Khaki or navy pants with a solid collared shirt. So much for expressing yourself at school. I certainly feel for the kids these days; it's like they can't just be kids. Well we have a few shirts and plenty of shorts (thanks grandpa). Now we just need to get the standard school list stuff, which I don't think has been released yet. At least that part is pretty fun for kids. At least, I always enjoyed it.

Outside of school prepping, we have been invaded with sickness. The boys are sick after our recent trip to the children's museum. I always hope it isn't going to happen, but kind of expect it to at this point. Happens every time. It's like a parade of sick kids are always at the museum. Licking the toys and coughing in your face. Actually, I had a grandparent cough directly in my face last time we were there. Luckily, I seem alright at this point. We also have gone to some garage sales, went to pick strawberries, and saw the Angry Birds movie. The boys really enjoyed eating, I mean picking, strawberries. We ended up with about 5 lbs. We didn't want them to go bad, so they were turned into fruit leather via the dehydrator. They turned out alright for our first fruit leather making experience. We got a little more than we bargained for in our strawberry picking experience. In the past when we've gone fruit picking it was an open strawberry field and you fill up the little container or bring your own.  This place was different. It was organized and they gave you a box that holds about 10 lbs of strawberries. They assigned us a row to go down for picking. Then you put a little flag where you stopped so they know what areas have been picked through. The boys were doing more eating than picking. Ok, we all were. Apollo looked like a zombie baby when we were finished with all the red juices dried to his clothes and face. It was cute. It was a beautiful, sunny day until the clouds rolled in and we were stuck in a storm. Freezing cold rain and strong winds cleared the fields rather quickly. People took refuge in the nearby brush. It was very cold. Joe and I were soaked from blocking the kids. Luckily, Apollo had some coverage from the backpack carrier. Lucian and I followed the old guy next to us into the wooded area for extra coverage. We survived the storm and came out only slightly traumatized. We followed it up with pie and honey sticks. Then the boys passed out on the long drive home. It was certainly an experience. Luckily, no tornadoes came through. Hopefully, I managed a few decent picking pictures.

Looking forward to our next adventure :)