Mama's Boys

Grammy came this weekend to visit! We were supposed to be getting some family pictures taken and she was going to lend us a hand with the kids, but the pics got cancelled due to the yucky weather. That was okay by me, though! I got to take a nap on Saturday afternoon -- actually, I was ordered to take one by my mom (I don't know what Tanner's problem is ... naps are AWESOME!). Then Jon and I got to go out and see a movie. We saw The Hangover, which was sooo hilarious!

I just love having my mom here. She stayed all the way until this afternoon, watched my boys, did my laundry, cleaned my kitchen several times. We talked a lot about how much we LOVE our boys and how the love that mothers have for their sons is so very special. Of course, I know that the bond between mother and daughter is special, too, but maybe this love between moms and their boys is unique because it's so very surprising. Every mom knows they'll love a little girl -- they know just how to care for her, dress her, etc -- but who knew that you could love a little boy THIS MUCH!!! I'm so glad God gave me two of them! And I'm also so thankful that he gave me a mom to love and encourage me as I parent them!

Poor Jon!

He left the house this morning around 8:00.

I got a call from him around 8:30.

He got a ticket pulling out of our subdivision.

Then he ran out of gas about 10 minutes later.

Not a good way to start the day.

Just Checkin' In

I've been such a bad blogger lately, and I really don't have a good excuse.


We've just been busy.


And my house is a mess.


And my laundry pile just seems to get bigger and bigger. Probably because my laundry room is a mess and I need to clean it just so that I can load my washer.


And I just feel like I'm kind of in a funk.


So I'm going to spend the next 45 minutes before I go to bed trying to whip this place back into shape.


Oh yeah ... Landon is almost crawling. He's inchworming actually, if you really want to know. It started over the weekend, and now he's all over the place. And it's TOO DARN CUTE ... just like he is.

And Tanner rode a pony last week. I'm pretty sure his life is now complete. He talked about it for a good half hour afterwards. :)

Off to clean house!

In case you're wondering ...

Jon just mentioned that he would like lessons in how to play the recorder for his birthday. You know ... the little flute everyone learns how to play in 4th grade music class? Yep .. that's the one.

Undercover Agents

Don't let their cuteness fool you.

These boys may look like they're just playing innocently together, as brothers often do.

In reality, though, they're conspiring against me -- plotting how they might further their campaign for a sleep-deprived mother. And their daddy is no better. Nobody wants me to get any sleep around here. Nobody. Consider the evidence:

7:00 pm -- Landon goes to bed.

8:00 pm -- Tanner goes to bed.

9:15 pm -- I'm ready for bed and saying goodnight to Jon. He guilts me into staying up later with him. "Don't forget I'll be starting school again soon!!"

10:30 pm -- I'm finally in bed. Drifting off to sleep.

11:00 pm -- Get up to give Landon his pacifier

12:30 pm -- Hear Tanner crying, go in to see what's wrong.

12:32 pm -- Sit in bed and worry about why Tanner has been getting up in the middle of the night lately

12:53 pm -- Get up to give Landon his pacifier

12:58 pm -- Get up to give Landon his pacifier

1:04 am -- Landon is still fussing. Change his wet diaper.

1:12 am -- Landon is still fussing. Nurse him, even though he's probably not hungry.

3:00 am -- Landon wakes up for his regular feeding.

3:30 am -- Jon cuddles up to me as I get back in bed. "Stay on your own side of the bed!!"

4:15 am -- Get up to give Landon his pacifier.

4:58 am -- Get up to give Landon his pacifier, then decide to just bring him into bed with me.

5:30 am -- Landon wakes up for his regular feeding.

6:00 am -- Landon up for the morning. I get up thinking at least I can get a shower before Tanner wakes up usually around 7:30). Maybe even have a cup of coffee and fold a load of laundry.

6:10 am -- Tanner wakes up.

Repeat every night for 2 weeks. Mom's toast.

Sometimes He Just Cracks Me Up

Over the last few months, Tanner's vocabulary has expanded exponentially. He's pretty much able to communicate to us whatever he's thinking. Maybe not very eloquently, but still ... we know what he means. Which brings me to this morning's conversation. Whenever he wants to communicate that something is big or that there is a lot of of it, he uses the word "heavy." Whenever he wants to communicate that something is small, he uses the word "baby." By the way, I think one of my favorite things in the world is one of his "heavy" hugs. :)

But, I digress. Back to Tanner's room this morning. As I was changing his poopy diaper, we had this conversation:

T: Uuuucky ....

Me: SOOOOOO uuuucky.

T: HEEEEAVY uuuucky!

And that was just the beginning of today's laughs. Later on in the afternoon, I was sneaking in a quick run on our treadmill. I had just put Landon down for his nap, and Tanner was in his room supposedly napping. Let's just say it was taking him a while to fall asleep. In fact, I had put him in his room a full hour before. After about 15 minutes of running, I peaked at him on our video monitor. He was sitting at the end of his bed rail, with one leg on each side, yelling "I'm wriding, I'm wriding! Horsey! Horsey!"

I hope he's this funny tomorrow, too!

Big Day for the Littlest Hall

I'm really disappointed in myself these past few weeks with how little I've blogged. But, I've been super busy and something had to give. Usually it's housework, but I was hosting playgroup and a football watching party this week, so I had to stay on top of things. And I was crabby most of the week, so you probably wouldn't have wanted to read what I had to say anyways. :) Tomorrow is the beginning of a new week, though, and I'm determined to make it a good one.

Today was a busy day preparing to have some friends over to watch football. But, we did take a little time out this morning to celebrate our sweet baby Landon's first meal ... rice cereal ... yum! (at least he thought so!) I'm pretty sure that most of it ended up inside the crumb catcher of his bib, but he was all smiles pretty much througout the whole experience, and I didn't get any of the funny faces I was expecting. We might have to wait for green beans or peas before we see that! God, I love this kid! His dimples just make me melt!

All eyes on me for a change! I like being the center of attention!

Come on, old man! Get it to me just a little faster!

Get IN my belly!

Where I'm At

LOVING 5 months

TRYING REALLY HARD TO LOVE 2 years, 2 months

(The AGES, not the kids.)

That about sums it up for today.

Summer Lovin'

Today was a good day.

Sunshine, Friends, Yummy Blueberry Cake, a Walk/Bike Ride ... all ingredients for a happy mom and cheerful kiddos. Enjoy the pics!

While Landon was sleeping, Tanner and I baked this Blueberry Coffee Cake.

And ate some, too. :)

Then, the three of us went for a walk to the park. Tanner rode his bike.

He was totally excited about his new helmet.


He played on the slides for a little while and chased around all of the older boys, pretending he was one of them.






Our house is about 1/4 mile from the park. Just after crossing the street from the park to the sidewalk, Tanner decided that he didn't want to ride anymore. So, here I was, carrying the tricycle and pushing a stroller while my little boy crawled behind me.

... and then stopped for a break ... to look at bugs ...

... and then crawled a little further ...

... and then did a little bear walk.

We continued this for most of the rest of the way home -- until we heard a dog barking behind one of the neighbors' fences and I told him it was going to get us. I've never seen him pedal so fast. I'll have to keep that in my bag of tricks! (What a mean mom.) What a cute biker. :)

And as for this guy, he's rolling around everywhere.

He's finally figured out tummy to back.
I cannot help myself -- my days are spent covering him in kisses.

He is just too yummy for his own good!