Hello Summer!

It is HOT out there. So incredibly humid too. When did early June get so hot? Oh, wait, I forgot -- the year James was born and the following year. Ugh. Hopefully we'll have some reprieve soon.

Things here are good. I feel like I need to write down updates about the boys and life otherwise in 20 years when they ask me I'll have vague answers like, "You were adorable and perfect". True enough but still.

James: Is now 4 years old! We celebrated with a school party, a MOMS Club party, a family trip to Chuck E. Cheese, family party in Ohio over the same weekend as my grandma's party, and finally a playgroup party this past week. We are partied out. Everything was perfect until 45 minutes before the playgroup friends were set to arrive. I went down the hall to get Nate up from his nap and all of a sudden the screaming and crying began from the living room. Seems that James had been spinning around and accidentally lost balance or something and slammed his face and front right tooth right into our new (new to us) piano. There wasn't much blood so I gave him an ice cube and had him lie down. When I finally saw the tooth I noticed it was pushed back a little bit. Because I am not mother of the year, and the tooth wasn't loose or bleeding, I figured we could go on with the party and go to the dentist the next day. Being the trooper he is, James pulled himself together for his party (although he didn't eat any pizza) and in the morning I got us to the dentist. Good news is that there's no damage to his permanent tooth (and James was AWESOME during his first x-ray). Bad news is that if the tooth turns grey or gets an abcess we might have to pull it. Figure there are much much worse things that could happen since it's just a baby tooth.

Then, to top the week off, we went to the pool on Friday night and James stepped on something (mulch? We're not sure) and his big toe was bleeding all the way home. Not his week. It was puffy and looked uncomfortable. But in the morning was just fine.

He's currently obsessed with Rescue Heroes. To the point that I'm badgered all day long as to WHEN the TV show will be on again. Finally I just started asking James when they'd be on, figuring he'd heard me at least 3000 times. Somehow that seemed to click because he stopped asking. :) In any case, Greg is now on a mission and got some Rescue Heroes toys off Craigs List. Non-stop imaginary play by James has kept him busy a lot, which has been nice.

James says "zi-ert" when he means to say "dessert". He finished school for the year with a great report and wonderful friends.

He's a great little person to have around. And he's growing up so fast. This past week he learned how to buckle himself into his car seat by himself (5 point harness!), a skill I had hoped to teach him by the fall so he could do it himself when we leave the house when the baby is here. But he taught himself and is SO proud. I love to see his shy smile when he's full of pride. :) A lot of times he comes over for a hug and tells me how much he loves me. I got lucky. He's a cool kid.

Nate: What can I say?! My future frat guy is just...such a fun goofball! He makes us laugh and cry and sigh all at the same time. The other morning I could hear him in his crib laughing. He was sleeping! I wonder what his dream was about! He rises nice and early (6ish) but has learned to play in his crib for at least 1/2 hour before calling out for me. I feel that 6:30 is the earliest acceptable time to wake up! He takes great naps for 2-3 hours and is SO easy to get to bed at night...literally, just put him in his crib and he watches his music and lights and never makes a sound. The other night I checked on him and his blanket was covering his face - not so scary since he's almost 2 but still!

Language-wise we've committed to trying to get Nate to say more words. He currently "says" (and I say this with quotes because I know what he's saying but I doubt anyone else besides Greg and James would know): no, go, car, ball, balloon, dog, cat, milk, more, juice, please. He also has a few signs. What's so frustrating for him and us is that he understands EVERYTHING. He throws garbage away. He puts his dirty clothes in his hamper. He points, nods, and shakes his head. He makes it VERY clear about what he wants or does not want. But he just can't get the words out. So I'm trying to be patient and calm and just ask him to say words when I can get some time. I am hopeful that his preschool attendance this fall will help a lot. James's language really took off with preschool so I hope the same for Nate.

However, behavior-wise, I am also nervous. Nate is a big kid -- strong and assertive. He goes in for hugs that lead to full on body tackles. If he's tired and frustrated with someone not sharing, he will bite (normally this is reserved for James only but still, on a few occasions it's been to others). He has been known to push (normal behavior) and just be all over the place with his body. So I am trying to work on getting him to communicate more and better.

Because I don't want this to come across as Nate being a hard kid, he's also the most lovey, sweet, cuddly boy. He loves to sit close to me and read books. He wants to be carried and hugged all the time. He gives sloppy kisses. He adores his big brother and would do anything to be like him. He's all over wonderful. I can't wait until we unlock the door to his mind some more and hear what he's thinking. Because I can guarantee he is going to be the life of the party, the guy everyone wants to be friends with, the class clown, the good friend, and the sweetheart all the girls want to date. :)

# 3: So far so good! I am 18 weeks along and feeling much better. Sleeping better and more soundly as well, which is nice. Such a relief. Definitely still tired but I've decided that is just a fact of my life that will never end. We will have our sonogram in a few weeks. We'll see...

Otherwise....we made it to and from Ohio just fine. My grandma enjoyed having everyone there for her birthday, which was lovely. We also went to Greg's cousin's baptism and brought home Greg's grandma's piano (see "tooth incident" above). Overall it was nutty and busy and crazy but still fun. I will post photos next.

So things are good and hot and busy and the summer is here. James begins camp this week but only has a few weeks all summer. He will also take swimming lessons and both boys will take a Wee Play class. We also have our trip to Denver this summer. Phew. It will feel long but I know it will go fast. I mean, when did I get to be 18 weeks pregnant?!