Ev & Jack-Jack

We have been doing a lot of hanging out around here. Snow is still on the ground, and Jack is still recovering from pneumonia, so we have been finding things inside to keep us busy.

Jack-Jack (or Jackaroo, according to Evan), has learned to keep his balance while standing:



And he has mastered clapping! He is so excited to clap. Today we did many goofy things to get Jack to clap: silly faces, laughing, squealing, jumping up and down; it's been a pretty exciting day here because of Jack's new talent.



Evan pulled out his Playmobil bin today during Jack's afternoon nap. Because of all the small parts, Playmobil has to stay in the closet when Jack is awake. Evan was thrilled to put his raccoons in their "tree tunnel" (hollow log), and for his teeny tiny butterfly to ride in an airplane.





{Clapping while holding two roll-around balls.}





I love this photo because he looks so bored with me and my camera!






Evan likes to play as long as he can in the morning while wearing his pajamas. Changing into day clothes isn't his favorite activity. I hear a lot of "but I am wearing a shirt!" or "I don't need new pants!" and "my underwear is clean, not dirty!"

Have a wonderful Friday, friends.

{Almost} 10 Months Old.

• You are almost 10 months old, Jack, and you are so much fun. You have mastered crawling and are zooming all over the house now. You especially love to crawl toward (and put in your mouth) anything your brother is playing with & it drives him crazy!
• You can say "mama" and "dada", but don't like to share those words with us often.
• You weigh 24lbs. 14oz. and are wearing 18-24 month clothes.
• You love to smile. You have the best smile!
  

• You adore your big brother. You love it when he talks to you, and sings to you, and plays peek-a-boo with you.
• I love to tickle you and hear that amazing giggle you have.
  
• Bath time is one of your favorite things. You love to splash and play with Evan every night before bed.
• You are still on a two-nap-per-day schedule and it is wonderful, for you and for me. You wake up from nap time happy & alert & ready to play.
• We love you so, so much Jack-Jack.

"These Two" Layout.

I love, love, love this photo of the boys. It's my new favorite, so I had to turn it into a digital layout. I used the left half of a Cathy Zielski sketch (for Design Your Life) as the foundation, with some papers by Katie Pertiet, felt hearts by Pattie Knox, and a digital brush by Karla Dudley:



Is anyone else having a hard time getting into Ice Dancing? I love the Olympics (summer & winter), but this sport is just silly. I had the same feeling when I tried to watch synchronized swimming & the trampoline during the '08 summer Olympics. I think the announcer just said the ice dancers had "soft, rhythmic, knee action." It's time to watch my recorded CSI episode from last night, I think :-)

Have a great weekend!
xoxo E.

These two...

drive their mama crazy almost daily.

laugh together.

love to play in their playroom.

cry, whine, giggle, smile, screech, fuss, and squirm.

are learning to share & be nice to one another.

have an undeniable bond that has grown and developed over the last few months.

are thriving in our new home.

love to be on "our" routine... variations of that routine are a different story (and lead to lots of tears and meltdowns).

show affection constantly with kisses and hugs (although Jack is a hair puller, so Evan has to be careful!).

are perfect just the way they are...







... and are loved unconditionally by their mama and daddy.

Evan 46 months. Jack 9 months.

For Today: February 16, 2010

Outside my window... the snow continues to fall and it is beautiful.

I am thinking... about how big my sweet baby Jack is getting. I also cannot believe Evan is going to be four in less than two months. Why do they have to grow up so fast?

I am thankful for... my husband's job (that he loves). And our friends and family who call and e-mail and text and facebook and make us feel connected to them even though we are 2,000 miles away.

From the kitchen... homemade macaroni and cheese (with ham), corn on the cob, and garlic bread for the big people, pureed vegetables and sweet corn puffs for the littlest Taylor.

I am wearing... a cream fleece zip-up sweatshirt, black yoga pants, and no shoes.

I am creating... a couple of digital scrapbook layouts, and a (belated) Valentine's Day gift.

I am going... to put laundry away & play with the kids. I also might watch a little bit of the Olympics I recorded last night.

I am reading... Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah. Thoroughly enjoying this book.

I am hoping... to start & finish my office on Saturday. I'm really anxious to finish project 365, work on Jack's baby book, make some cards, and use my Letterpress.

I am hearing... Evan make helicopter noises as he plays with his Fire Station. I am so glad he likes his *big* Christmas gift from mommy and daddy.

Around the house... there are piles of laundry that need to be put away & toys that need to be picked up.

One of my favorite things... is watching Evan use his imagination and create stories for his firemen. This is something relatively new for him. He is moving away from playing the Wii and watching cartoons in the morning, and would rather build with his Trio blocks, or rescue people with his wooden fire truck. I love seeing his imagination at work.

A few plans for the rest of the week... stay inside and wait for the snow storm to pass. Play with my kids. Read. Scrapbook. Clean. Organize. Watch more of the Olympics.

A picture to share...

I Love You

I am working through all the assignments for Cathy Z.'s Design Your Life class. Here is my week three, assignment one layout:

"I Love You"


I didn't follow the sketch exactly with this layout, but I'm happy with the results.

Jack is feeling better today. His fever is down, his cough is better, and he smiled a lot more today :-)

xoxo Erin

Pneumonia: Round 2

I had grand plans to write a long blog post tonight with lots of photos... but Jack has been diagnosed with bacterial pneumonia and is grumpy. He is also not sleeping well, therefor I am grumpy. And Evan is fighting a cold, so we are hanging out here the next few days (and I am going to bed early!). What is it with my kids being sick all the dang time? Good thing I don't work... I don't know how I could take so many days off to be home with sick babies!

Hopefully I will update with photos of two healthy boys soon.

xoxo Erin.

Alike & Different

I am working away on Cathy's class & have another layout to share:

I love that I am getting so many photos scrapped while taking this class.

I am off to bed... 'night!

xoxo Erin.

Pre-School, a Layout, and Jack

Pre-School

Evan started pre-school on Tuesday & it was a totally different experience this time. His first day of school in Pullman was a wee bit traumatic for him (and us), and he spent the first 30 minutes crying on the circle time rug. Yesterday, he gave me a hug and a kiss and followed his teacher to his new classroom without looking back. I didn't bring my camera for his second, first day of school (I had my hands full without Mark & having Jack), but I'm hoping to get a few photos of him at his new school tomorrow.

Layout

Another asymmetrical layout for Cathy Zielski's Design Your Life class. These photos of Evan show just how energetic, fun, and crazy my little guy is. He is a ball of energy most of the time, and loves going to places like the science center. Usually he goes and goes, eats, then crashes on the car ride home (which is exactly what he did on this trip!).



Jack

I haven't posted a new photo of Jack-Jack in a few days, so this one is for the grandparents:



I think he looks so much like Evan in this photo... I really need to pull out my external hard drive and find photos of Evan around the same age. Although I'm not sure why Jack looks bald on his right side...?

Jack has hit a couple of milestones in the last three days. Monday he said "mama" for the first time & I must admit I did a little happy dance in the kitchen! Evan's first word was "da da", so this was extra special for me. And today he fed himself a Gerber fruit puff for the first time. He's been trying for a week now to grasp those little puff bits and shove them in his mouth, and today he did it. Mark, Evan, and I clapped and cheered for him & he got a big "I did it" grin on his face. I love that grin :-)

Tomorrow is another busy day for us as I shuttle Mark to and from work, drop off and pick up Evan from school, and keep the little one entertained (and away from all computer and phone cords). Wish me luck!

xoxo Erin.

You

One of my assignments for Cathy Zielske's Design Your Life class was to create an asymmetrical layout using a sketch Cathy created. I really wanted to focus on Evan and the things he is doing right now (plus what I am always thankful for: he made me a mama :-). Asymmetrical layouts aren't my thing usually... I like symmetry! But, I'm happy with how it turned out:



The kids and I are hanging out here tomorrow, then Evan starts pre-school on Tuesday! He knows he won't be going back to Miss Jean's class, but I think he is excited to be with other kids.

xoxo Erin.