Yes, Sir! No, Sir! No Excuse, Sir!

Today, I am under strict orders from my little brother, the West Pointer, to UPDATE MY BLOG!!! And so, here goes -- for Uncle Eric ...

First of all, I'm feeling very bothered because two women came to my door today (for the second time) to talk to me about "Jehovah." I've tried to convey to them both times that I am a Christian, I study the Bible, I love Jesus, etc. They are very nice and I, in turn, am very nice to them. As they left a few minutes ago, they said they would be returning again sometime. UGGH! How can I kindly tell these women that I don't share their Jehovah's Witness beliefs and would rather them not return?! I just hate making people feel bad and I'm trying to figure out how to be a good Christian about this! Any suggestions?

I know I haven't been good about updating lately. There are a few reasons for this. First of all, I'm trying to keep the computer turned OFF during the day. I find our days go much better when I'm not constantly tempted to check the internet for this or that. I tend to get sucked in easily.

Secondly, I've been spending a LOT of time making these Roman Shades for my playroom. I love how they turned out, but will be glad when they're ALL finished (I have one more left to do!). Then, I can move on to some more fun sewing projects. Curtains and such are kind of stressful to make because the fabric is such a big investment and also because you have to look at the finished project EVERY DAY. I know, Eric, I know ... my life is so very interesting, isn't it?





Want to know what else I've been doing? I couldn't be watching television, right? I mean NOTHING is on right now. And I especially wouldn't be caught dead watching that trashy show Bachelor Pad, right?? ;) How would I explain THAT to the women at the door? Okay, okay ... I confess ... I've suffered through 3 episodes of it. And I'm not going to watch it ANY MORE. It's total trash. But, I AM going to keep watching Brothers & Sisters, which I've been getting on Netflix. Talk about addicting -- my goodness -- I cannot stop. I practically sprint to the mailbox every three days when the next installment arrives! I'm working on Season 3 right now. So. Good. Don't watch it. Your productivity levels will take a serious nosedive. I'm not kidding.

Hmmm ... what else. I know there has to be something else occupying my time. What could it BE? Certainly not THESE little buggers:

We've actually been slowing down a bit here lately, spending a lot more time at home instead of constantly on the go. It's been really nice. I'm so thankful that my boys have gotten along so well up to this point. They definitely have their moments, but for the most part, they really enjoy each other.

Tanner is pretty much an awesome big brother to Landon.

And Landon is determined to follow Tanner around everywhere.

So for right now, at least, they're buddies, and we couldn't be happier about that.

Jon and I just commented today on how Tanner has been super-fun lately. He's not ALWAYS obedient or compliant, but when he is, he's such a joy to be around! He really has such a sweet heart. He loves to snuggle and I honestly think that if they made a Baby Bjorn (baby carrier) big enough, he would love to ride around in it all day. I'm constantly shocked at how good his memory is and how much he notices around him. Some of the things he says are so hilarious. Yesterday, he randomly came up to me in the kitchen, held his fist out, and said "Pound the Rock, Mom." So, I gave him a little fist-bump and he said "Boo-Ya!!" I almost died. Such a character ...







And then there's Landon. Oh, Landon. We are trying to do away with the pacifier unless he's in bed or in the car, but it's not going so well. He gets so MAD!! He throws himself on the floor several times a day in a tantrum and he's perfected the fake-cry. This type of behavior always stressed me out when Tanner was a toddler, but I find it all kind of hilarious with Landon. It's much easier to ignore than it was with my first. When he's not throwing a fit, he's very laid back and happy. He has quite a sense of humor and loves to make me laugh. His only word is "Uh-Oh," which we hear about 100 times a day. I can't wait until he really starts talking and I can find out what's going through his mind. I look at him everyday and still remember the moment they handed him to me in the hospital -- wasn't that just yesterday?? I can't believe how fast the time is going with him!







Well, now that it's almost 10:30, I have to get to bed! Yes, it's Saturday night and I can barely keep my eyes open past 10. I would love to blame it on parenthood, but my college roommate would totally call me out on that and remind me that this has always been the case (And she's right!) Goodnight, everyone!

Wordless Wednesday

Status Report

One Happy Camper,

One Sick-y,

and 37,000 Mosquito Bites.

Summer Lovin'??

I know this is a bit sacrilegious for a northerner to say, but ... I think I'm ready for fall.

I know, I KNOW! How COULD I wish away these last weeks of summer? In a few months, I'll be dying for something fun to do that will get us out of the house. Then, I'll have to wrestle my kids into winter gear every time we leave. I'll be depressed that I haven't seen the sun in, well, MONTHS.

Okay, okay. I talked myself out of it. Maybe I'm not ready for a change of season just yet. Seriously, though, my mission this summer has been to wear out my kids each day. However, in the process, I think I've worn myself out, too! We have just been GOING-GOING-GOING all summer long. Spray parks, pools, playgrounds, fairs, farms, picnics, farmers markets, museums, zoos, trips to Grammy's ... Forget the backyard -- I put my kids out there and they look at me like, "Seriously, Mom? BORING!!!!"

I guess it's time to put my teacher cap on and think of some things to make the backyard fun again. That way, I could just pull a chair up somewhere in the shade, bring out a magazine and an iced coffee, and really relax. (Hey, a girl can dream, right?)

Here's the rundown on everyone:

TANNER

He's such a chatterbox at home these days -- constantly asking questions and telling me things -- I love it! His newest love is The Sound of Music. He knows all of the songs. It makes Jon crazy, but I am SO HAPPY about this! :)


He's been going to "camp" this summer (2 hrs, 2 days/week) and his last day is today. I am very excited for him to start preschool this fall. I think he is going to have so much fun learning new things -- I can't wait!
The boy DOES NOT SLEEP. Doesn't nap. We're having a REALLY hard time putting him to bed each night. Not sure what to do about it. I've learned to just expect a struggle with EVERYTHING we do. Meals, snacks, time to get dressed, time to brush teeth, turn off the TV, get shoes on, get in car, get out of car, take a bath, get out of the bath ... I'm really trying hard to be firm! I'm thinking of starting some sort of reward system to try and encourage him with some of these behaviors! Any suggestions?

And, because we need to end on a good note, he is back to riding his bike again. Jon taught him how to make skid marks with his tires, so he slams on the brakes every few feet, gets off his bike, and looks to see if he left his mark.



LANDON

Landon is pretty much perfect, except for the fact that he SCREAMS AT THE TOP OF HIS LUNGS about 70% of the day. No. Kidding. It's basically his way of communicating. He screams when he's happy. When he's mad, frustrated, angry, excited. It's the kind of blood-curdling scream that makes you want to crawl out of your skin. At this point, you'd think that I would be used to it, but no. It still gets me every time. BTW ... the other 30% of the time, he's usually laughing.


He has the best sense of humor. And the worst temper.



He loves his brother so much it kills me. His favorite thing is to hug him and wrestle around with him.


I love love love looking back at him in my rear-view mirror and seeing him smile back at me with those dimples. I'm so in love with this kid.



JON

Jon spent the first part of his summer going to class 3 nights/week. Now he's down to 1 night, and in a few weeks, he starts a month-long break and will be home EVERY night! I'm SOOOO excited for that!

I'd say he's had a pretty fun summer -- lots of golfing and wakeboarding.

He was pretty obsessed with watching The Bachelorette. I was worried about him for a second. Especially when he brought home PEOPLE magazine just to read about Ali and Roberto. I think he's back to normal now -- he had UFC on again last night :)

He told me this morning to order pizza for dinner tonight, which basically makes him a pretty awesome husband since it means I won't be cooking OR cleaning up. YAY!!



ME

A friend of mine convinced me to train for a half-marathon with her earlier this summer. Our race was about two weeks ago and I'm SO glad I did it! The train-up ended up being really fun and I feel like I really accomplished something.

I have about a million little projects floating around up in my head right now -- just some crafty things, home improvement, etc. If only I could find some time to actually DO them!! I DID make some CUTE slipcovers for my camera strap last week, though. So fun :)

I rarely miss working, but every year around this time, I miss my job just a little -- something about seeing brand new school supplies everywhere I look! I always end up stocking up ... but for what??


Okay, that's it for now! I can hear Landon waking up ... gotta think of something fun for the boys to do ... PRONTO!! Enjoy a few more random pics! (I KNOW -- Landon is quite the swimsuit model :)

Lately ...

We've been doing a lot more than just sitting around and picking our noses.

Although our pictures seem to tell another story.

Stay tuned. I promise an update on all that we've been up to tomorrow!