I'm Back!

Well, as it turns out, it was just the monitor that bit the dust. So, we bought a new one day before yesterday and all is back to normal now...thank goodness. What did we ever do before the internet? I honestly can't remember! Jackson is at school right now and Carter is rolling around in his crib trying to decide whether or not he wants to fall asleep yet so I thought I'd try and blog while I have the chance.

To catch up, it has been a little rough in our household the last few weeks. For some reason, both boys decided to go through a "challenging" phase at the same time. By challenging I mean "Driving Mommy Absolutely Bonkers" phase. Jackson is learning all about his independence and is voicing his opinions very loudly. "No" is a very regular word these days (I thought that phase had passed, but it's back with a vengeance). He takes his time with everything he does (much like his Daddy.) Of course, 3 year olds have no concept of time, but seriously! When trying to get into the car, he lazes around and looks for snails and picks up rocks and sticks to play swords and then he HAS to climb in the car BY HIMSELF! This process takes forever and then he looks into the trunk as he is turning himself around to sit down in his seat and then I have to strap him in. I'm not the most patient person in the world so I have to just bite my tongue everytime we have to get in the car. It's also always "5 more minutes" or "2 more minutes" or "No, I'm not ready yet!" This is also the phase where I am so scared to see a really fat person or someone with really crazy hair, b/c leave it to my child to point it out...vocally. The other day we were at the park and he said "Mommy, that girl in the green shirt is on Sesame Street". She just smiled and said "Really, I didn't know that." That was nothing...it could've been so much worse. Then, at the zoo the other day we saw a group of "misfits" shall we say. They were dressed like thugs and had red and orange and black spiked up hair. I just cringed hoping Jackson wouldn't see them, but sure enough he goes "Mommy, that girl has spiky crazy hair. She looks like a lion." Then, he just started cracking up. Luckily, they pretended not to hear and kept walking. I know you all really wanted to hear all of this in great detail. Just letting you know what you're in for! Get ready :-)

Now, onto Carter. He is 15 months old and throwing tantrums full throttle. I really don't remember Jackson going at it this young, but maybe I blocked it out :-) He is trying SO HARD to communicate and when he just can't get his point across, he is throwing himself on the floor in a screaming fit or standing up screaming and stomping his feet up and down. He fusses in the car now so every car ride is so much fun (you may refer back to the previously mentioned trip to get the older child into the car). He also doesn't really care for the stroller. I always have to carry snacks wherever we go to entertain him and those snacks always end up on the floor of the car. Then, David asks me how my car gets so dirty! Trips to the grocery store with both boys are now impossible. Jackson is great (he used to be the one that would give me trouble at the store) but Carter on the other hand starts fussing as soon as we walk through the sliding doors. I usually end up carrying him the last half of the trip which is so not fun while trying to shop for groceries on the bottom shelf! No amount of snacks will appease him during our trips to the store so the little man usually stays home with Daddy while I go shopping. He and Jackson have been playing really well together, but they are also fighting over toys really well together now too. Oh, the joy! And I still have about 17 more years of this!

OK, I think I'm done venting now. This is like therapy! Here are a few pics of our little angels :-) Notice the foot in the face in the pic below.

Corey and Julie Chandler came over last weekend and we got to meet their 9 week old baby boy, Hudson. Isn't he just the cutest? I just wanted to hold him all night! That age is so sweet when they just sleep in your arms and cuddle for hours. What a cutie pie.

Oh yeah, Jackson starts soccer at the end of March and we are so pumped. I get to be a Soccer Mom!!! I wonder if I'll get a sticker for the back of my car :-) Where's my minivan?!

Been Away

Well, our computer kicked the bucket, I think. I've been having to use David's laptop when he gets home from work at night. I never realized how much time I spend on the internet until I had to live without it for a while! Anyways, we have been super busy and I will update as soon as we either get our computer fixed or buy a new one!

The Zoo

We had a great weekend. We headed down to the San Antonio Zoo on Sunday to check out a new exhibit and it was awesome! They recently added an underwater exhibit with hippos and alligators and all kinds of cool stuff. Jackson could've stayed at that one place the entire time (so could I.) The boys were great the whole time except at the end when Jackson found out that we were too late to ride the train since the zoo was closing. After letting him choose where we would go out to eat, he was over it! Alamo Cafe is where he always wants to go because he LOVES their tortillas. We all had a great time and the boys were pooped when we got home. Here are a few pics from the zoo.

On another note, Carter has turned into quite the little monkey. He will climb anything and will push something next to whatever it is he wants to climb in order to reach it. Drives me crazy! Jackson was never a climber. Just another disimilarity between the 2. Anyways, when I don't hear him for a while, I start my search around the house. You know that eery quiet that just isn't normal? Well, recently, I've known where to look. His newest trick is climbing up on the train table in the play room and standing there until I come in and find him. He then gets a huge smile on his face and lifts his arms up like "Look what I can do!". No matter how many times I tell him "no", he continues to do it over and over and over. Maybe it's because I can't help but smile when I see him do it. It is pretty cute. Here's my monkey.

Also, Jackson came home from school yesterday with a cowboy hat that he had made (It was Rodeo Week) so I took a quick pic. He also brought home an adorable Valentine with his picture and foot prints. So precious. I'm so glad that he loves school so much. They do so many arts and crafts and things that I will be able to save forever. And, since I'm not one to pull out the scissors and glue and glitter, school works out great! Crayons, markers (Color Wonder) and playdough are about as far as I go :-) Here's a picture of the cowboy hat he made.

Is it just me?

Or does everyone with kids have a house that resembles this?

It seems that no matter how often I straighten up (which honestly isn't often enough) my little tyrants come racing through right after me and mess it all up again! If I unload the dishwasher, Carter is up on the open door trying to "help". If I'm folding laundry, both boys have to be right there "helping". My point is, no matter how hard I try to keep things straight and in order--it just doesn't happen. So, I thought I'd share a pic of our playroom which ALWAYS looks like this! Drives David and me crazy, but there is just no hope for this poor room. It can look spic and span after the boys go to bed and then by 8:30 am it looks just like this. Ugh.

The other pictures are of the boys with Uncle Michael on Super Bowl Sunday, Carter wearing Jackson's undies (Carter brought them to me one day and backed up and sat in my lap so I would put them on him), and the boys just being silly together.

And yes, Carter LOVES LOVES LOVES his binkies!