Preschool... Round 2

Evan started preschool this morning and he was beyond excited...

Although, not as excited to take so many pictures...

But we did manage to get a few good ones!

He brought his brand new toy... Boost... for show-and-tell...
(side note: it took me forever to find that toy, and we finally came across it yesterday!!)

And I just can't believe what a pipsqueak he was last year on his first day of preschool!

But at the end of the day, he had a great one!!

I'm thinking we need two...

What do you think?

My garden update

I really had high hopes for a nice "garden."

Well, maybe not that high since I started small, and in POTS:

I was so excited to share an update when my "garden" looked like this:

That was around the end of July, and I just never got around to posting the pictures...

Then THIS happened:

That was maybe a week ago or so.  All the rain, nasty heat, and bugs took a major toll on my "garden." 


And it went from this:

to this:

It was almost painful to upload and post these pictures.  I was just so proud of myself when everything was lush and green and growing... pride... just gets in the way...

Either that or maybe I'm just not a gardener...

But I DID get two peppers and 5 tomatoes before the plants took a turn for the worst, and I'm still holding out a little hope that the tomatoes still on the plants will do ok - but the pepper plant is gone.

Better luck next year maybe?

10 on 2sday

1. Avery and Brynn decided to switch up their personalities last week.  We were at the library for story time and Avery was the one clinging to my leg, and Brynn was the little socialite.  Not sure if it's going to stick, and I've heard of twins doing that (switching personalities), but man, as soon as we think we've got 'em pegged...

2.  I ran a 5K a couple weekends ago with the hubby.  Yes, he basically left me in the dust, however he did run with me for close to a mile.  Problem was, I was running faster than what I'm used to, and he was running slower than he is used to.  I ended up walking portions (boo), yet I still beat my previous time (only by 20-ish seconds, but still).  So I learned that I need to pace myself better from the start and not try to keep up with the hubs!

3.  The same weekend that we ran the 5K, my parents came to visit us!  My Mom wanted a head shot done, so we got a chance to play around and do a little photo shoot!  So, this one is a bit near and dear to my heart!!  :)  Love you, Mom!

4.  So I was really excited and shared with everyone last week that Evan started riding his bike.  But perhaps the more important part of this is that he did it AGAIN, and AGAIN!  It wasn't just a one-time-fluke!  And his quote last night as he was riding his bike; "Mommy, I am awesome all of the time!"  Guess he doesn't have a self esteem problem!!

5.  We have been back to the drawing board with Avery a little.  Her skin and digestive system has been acting up recently.  We are pretty sure we discovered strawberries as an additional allergy (yeah, REALLY disappointed).  We even stopped giving her soy milk for a few days wondering if that was causing problems.  It doesn't seem to be, but I started keeping a food journal again to see if I can figure out what's going on with her.

6.  Just a random tid-bit... Brynn takes splinter removal like a champ.  We've gone through 2 splinter removals now and she didn't even flinch! She just watched what we were doing with total curiosity.  That coupled with her being rather detail oriented and having great fine motor skills, and Dan and I are now convinced she is going to be a surgeon!  Nothin' like having high hopes and dreams for your kids!!  :)

7.  I just realized yesterday as I was reading several facebook statuses about kids starting kindergarten or going back to school, that I am happy to have one more year left before Evan starts kindergarten.  Sure we have our rough days, but I'm kinda partial to the little guy!

8.  I did another senior photo shoot recently!!!

9.  It is almost impossible these days to get all 3 kids in a good picture... this is my closest attempt:

10.  Last week we had a fun play date in the park, and I actually allowed my children to romp in the mud.   Totally not like me, and I was cringing THE ENTIRE TIME wondering how I was going to get them home without getting mud all over the van.   (ok, I didn't so much LET them as I didn't see what Avery was doing until it was too late, and by that time I just threw up my hands and said fuhgetaboutit, they may as well enjoy this cause it's NEVER HAPPENING AGAIN!)

Speaking of time outs...

...sometimes Avery likes to keep Evan company...

Big news of the Week!

Guess 

Who's

Riding

His

Bike!

All it took was a bribe incentive that he would get a Buzz Lightyear toy when he rode the bike around the block!

Ok, not quite. 

That gauntlet was thrown down a while ago, and Evan STILL wanted nothing to do with his bike.  Dan, who should get the Father-of-the-year-Award for this one, decided to work with him this week and told Evan he would be able to shoot more bad guys (like Emperor Zurg) if he was on his bike.  He took him around the block and worked on shooting the bad guys, took Evan's mind off the bike and just let him go. 

And the little man did it!!  All the way around the block by himself!!!

Talk about a proud momma!  (and wife!)

Monday Morning Happiness

A little something to get your Monday morning started off right!  (Who does she remind you of?  except much cuter, of course!) 

say what?

IMG_4656 editblog, originally uploaded by isuloribell.

Just trying something new with my pictures, and Brynn is here to help out...

10 on 2sday

So, I'm liking this list of 10 thing, so I think I'll keep it going with all that's going on here...


1.  Evan has graduated from nap time to "quiet time" over the past few weeks...  It's been an interesting transition - he does well with it as far as staying in his room while the girls nap, but there have been a few days I'm not sure he should go without a nap...  he gets a little cranky ~ that and the fact he gets a little bored with me, we've had a rough past few weeks.  I decided to try something new this week - in the mornings I have been asking him what he wants to do instead of me trying to come up with an activity and him not liking it (I know, it sounds so common sense) - but at least with his input the activities have been a bit more enjoyable!

2.  You probably noticed I placed an ad on my blog.  I must admit it feels a little weird.  But hopefully it's not distracting... Basically the story is like this; about a year ago I put my name on a waiting list with BlogHer, not really knowing if anything would ever come of it.  A couple weeks ago I got an email asking if I was still interested in placing an ad on my blog.  So I hemmed, and I hawed (I do that well), and decided to go for it (thanks for your input, by the way)!  They give you a lot of freedom to decide what you do and don't want to allow on your blog, which I really appreciate!

3.  We hosted 2 RAGBRAI teams last weekend...  another thing I hemmed and hawed at... I wasn't sure if I felt comfortable having people we didn't know coming in and out of our house with the kids around - but I've got to say, we had the best two groups imaginable!  They were great with the kids, totally respectful, and quite fun to be around!  I made dinner if anyone wanted to stick around, we had plenty of drinks, and stuff to make smores later ~ it was such a neat experience, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat!  Actually, Dan and I have been talking about adding RAGBRAI to our "bucket list" to accomplish some day!

4.  Speaking of accomplishments, I signed up for my 2nd 5K, which is coming up this weekend!  But this time I get to run with Dan!  He might will leave me in the dust, but at least it's something we get to do together!

5.  I just did my 1st senior photo shoot last night!!

6.  Avery & Brynn have been quite a bit more affectionate lately, as you saw in one of my last posts.  It's completely adorable, until one of them doesn't want to be hugged anymore and they start biting... it's still an issue I'm not entirely sure how to address.  Before I really thought the biting had more to do with teething, but now I see it happening more out of aggression.  I guess it's just one of those things I need to be watching more closely for and break it up when I can.

7. We've been attempting time outs with the girls.  It's mostly hilarious, since they know exactly what we are talking about, and exactly where to go ~ since they see Evan there so often...   I'm sort of thinking time outs in the corner probably aren't going to be so effective with Avery & Brynn, but we'll have to see.

8.   I can't believe preschool starts in 3 weeks ~ Evan is SO excited!  I am too ~ really, it gives us a little more structure which the kids I desperately need!!!!!

9.   I get to assist my friend with photographing another wedding this weekend!  I'm finding myself much less nervous, and far more excited about it!!  I still have so much to learn, but that's the best part of photography, is you never get bored!

10.  July was a tough month with a lot of ups and downs for me.  I have really been thinking a lot about what my priorities should be, and trying to get realistic about what that means.  And that's all I have to say about that.

18 months

Well 18 months sure came and went quickly.  (broken record, I know...)

This was my favorite age with Evan.  The curiosity of an 18 month old is unmatched, they use (some) words so you can communicate (a little) with them, they can walk pretty good on their own (saves the back), they can navigate stairs pretty well, they love to play, they (for the most part) share the same schedules as everyone else, and they haven't quite gotten into the terrible 2's yet.

Without wanting to rush life forward, I have really been looking forward to this age with the girls.  I was ready for the fun, the walking, the talking.

Turns out I wasn't exactly ready for 18 months with twins.  I didn't think it was possible, but it seems this age is harder than the lack-of-sleep-with-2-newborns-stage.

Their curiosity takes them in different directions.

Not only do they walk well, but they are running well too - again, opposite directions.

It's been an interesting summer - we haven't gone to the park as much as I'd like - Brynn is fearless and will climb to the highest point on the playground equipment, and once Avery finally got over her fear of grass, she no longer would sit still in the stroller while I went down the slide with Brynn.  So we've stuck around the fenced-in-backyard quite a bit.  Although, you won't hear anyone complaining since all 3 kiddos love the water table and the sprinklers!

Taking the kids on the driveway for sidewalk chalk was the bravest I've gotten all summer:

I figured as soon as one of the girls started running towards the street, we'd be done.  Surprisingly they managed to stay by the garage for about 15 minutes!

Getting to know Avery & Brynn's personalities has been the most fun part of the past 18 months.  From the beginning so much of their personalities have been far more obvious since we can compare kids side-by-side.

Brynn - introverted, prefers playing by herself, and definitely prefers being by herself when she is upset (or just snuggling with Mommy) - she is absolutely fearless (which scares the crap out me) - she loves books...

Avery - extroverted, loves people - warms up rather quickly, much more reserved when it comes to risk-taking - she loves to be the center of attention (although, sometimes she likes to play shy) - she loves shoes...

I suppose it's pretty obvious they don't look a ton alike... even just by looking at their hair.  I think Avery might have a little hair envy... whenever she sees me putting Brynn's hair in a "ponytail" she asks for one too... and I can usually get a little tiny one on the top of her head!

It's been a fun and exciting 18 months around here - certainly not many dull moments...