Flipper the Convert

You may be wondering about the title of this blog......... well, Sam has taken to a new form of communication. It has only been in the past two weeks, but happy or sad, Sam has decided to start letting out ear-deafening shrieks.

In fact, when we were in the mall the other day, a lady beside us commented that she thought he was trying to communicate with the dolphins. I thought that was the best description I have heard thus far. My mom seemed to think the fire alarm was going off the first time she heard it. Nice.

We also had an exciting weekend as both sets of grandparents came in to be a part of Sam's baptism (hence the second half of the title). It was such a fun time and a beautiful service. Sam even got to wear the family heirloom baptismal gown that his Nanny Sunshine made 60 years ago!

What What...

This is the second season since 2007 in which Carolina has swept Duke in both games.........way to go, Heels.

We found a way to beat daylight savings time! Get your kid hyped up about a Carolina game in order to keep him from napping so that he crashes in the car on the way home. He was so out that I picked him up, placed him on the changing table, changed his diaper, put on his pajamas, and laid him in bed for the night. Nice.




Here is our time to give a shout out to our Heels that have clinched #1 in the ACC and by tomorrow will probably be #1 in the nation. Hopefully on the way to the NCAA Champions as well...... but we won't get ahead of ourselves. We went to our friends - the Dudley's - to join some other Tarheels in WNC to cheer on our boys. Steven Edward and Sam were decked out for the affair. His dinner left a bit to be desired, but boy did he have a good time. And luckily his friend Ben had a train table, so he was entertained the entire game!





Notice that although we had 8 inches of snow last week, we are now in shorts.

A Reminder of the City

Well, we finally got a good snow here in Asheville. It has been coming for 6 years! It feels very similar to a snow we got in New York last year (you have to scan down to the second post) about the same time. But last year Steven Edward was so young he couldn't do too much so I ended up playing with my friend's kids in the snow. I sledded and built snowmen with the Dube's (who now live where snow is abundant and I'm sure are quite tired of it) who very much enjoyed my snow excitement. This year it was fun to do the same with my own son. He did not want to touch it, but he enjoyed walking in it and sledding with his daddy.

The snow started yesterday at around noon, and we were even able to get out in it and build a snowman last night!






Here is the snowman as of this morning. Poor guy....



Here are some pictures of our outing...Steven Edward only lasted about 15-20 minutes in the 20 degree windy weather. He was quite happy to get back inside to a fire and his toys! I decided the best age for snow must be between about 8 and 20! These little guys aren't up for the cold.

Two-ness

This weekend Steven's parents were able to come in town because his mom was speaking at a woman's retreat here for a local church. I was able to have my first girls' day out! The retreat was on the grounds of the Biltmore House, and I was able to have a wonderful morning of great speaking, good fellowship, and a great lunch. I even came home to two happy little boys (one who took a bottle really easily for the first time!)....well actually steven edward was grumpy but overall the day was a success. Steven was even able to do several jobs around the house with his dad! (One of which was assembling a crib for Sam because he had outgrown the weight limit of the bassinet feature of the pack and play by almost 5 pounds and the matress part was actually bending!) It was a freeing feeling to be able to leave all the boys and just have a morning out. Steven and I plan to spend a night away in April.....baby steps.


So now that Steven Edward is actually talking, I have some fun toddler stories to tell! To adopt a phrase from my sister we will call them Steven-isms

* On Friday we went to the nature center to look at the animals. He was walking up the path and just stopped suddenly, clasped his hands together and said "pray." He mumbled some words and then said "AMEN!" and started running down the path again. So random.

*This week he ran to the pantry and pointed to a coke can and said, "mama's juice," then pointed to the apple juice bottle and said, "jen jens juice" (Jen jen is how he referrs to himself.)

*And then tonight when I was putting him to bed, after reading two other books, he pointed at the Bible story book and said...."jesus, God." It made me smile.

He also knows almost all his colors and has started in on his letters. It is amazing that one day they just can tell you things! Today he started pointed out letters he knew amongst the alphabet magnets on the fridge. He also is very into the two-year old possession of things. Everything is "mines." I suppose the extra "s" comes from Mama's and Dada's. He is also all over the.... my do it....or no do dat. Welcome to twoness....we have arrived. Yesterday when forced to leave the Thomas the train table at Books-A-Million....he screamed and kicked so hard that I literally had to drape his waist over my shoulder while holding his feet to get him out of the store. This was just after the throwing himself on the ground screaming...........nice. Thank you Courtney for saying, "My child will never do that." Lesson learned.

Sam at 4 months....and Steven Edward at 22.5

I can't believe my boys are growing so quickly. Sam is the sweetest, smiley-ist baby! He is incredibly predictable and so much fun to be around. He coos a lot and is really laughing. He is also starting to take more interest in toys. He has started holding them in his hand and playing with them and very much enjoys his play-mat and exer-saucer. Even though I vowed differently, he has still taken the back seat when it comes to pictures. As a second child myself....I would be different. I would take just as many pictures of him as I did of Steven Edward. I would take many of him by himself. Yea...not so much. It is the thought that counts, right? Here is a video of him to make up for some of my inadequacies as a picture taker of my second. Sorry Sam.




Steven Edward is EXPLODING with words. He went from having very few to gaining a couple everyday. He now can say the names of all his friends and can point out the majority of things that are in books that we read regularly. It amazes me the things he knows and remembers. This morning his milk spilled and he looked at it and said, "bad cup." I have no idea where that came from. Their brains amaze me. He is also OBSESSED with Thomas the train. He wakes up in the morning saying it and goes to bed saying it. He runs around saying, Thomas, James, Gordon, Engine. Luckily for his obsession, he will acquire a train table for his birthday. I'm not sure if this will appease or enlarge the obsession. We will find out.

"I'm not sure about this Eli...."

Steven and his friend Eli....he calls him i-e

This morning we went to a coffee shop created for moms that has a play place for the kids. The kids have their own place and the moms have a separate place to sit and enjoy a coffee. But....as usual...somehow they all ended up spending at least half the time at our feet. Oh well. A good attempt to complete a sentence with an adult. Better luck next time.

Steven and Ana playing

Gabe with a pirate ship

Steven sat at this seat with this toy for at least 30 minutes. It was amazing. No ritalin for us.

Ryan learning about a magnadoodle.

Birthday Fun

Yesterday was my 28th birthday..... man 28 is like hitting 18...the 7's just seem younger. When you hit the 8's you are on your way to the next decade!

My husband had a late night at school, but he was able to get away for lunch. Then 5 of my friends came over for fun and thai food. They came without their kids and we were able to hang out and have adult conversation. Here is a picture!





I even had a cake with candles! I haven't had that in years.




And here is my son's new favorite food group! He is so much fun right now. I think he acquires at least two words a day!

Heavy Weights

Sam....3.5 months... 17.5 pounds
Steven Edward....22 months....28.5 pounds
Courtney.....back ache