Happy 31st Uncle Stanton!

A big gigantic Happy Birthday to one of our favorite uncles, and one of my favorite brothers.  Happy Birthday Uncle Stanton!!!  Too bad he's out of town for his birthday, I know my boys would love to celebrate with him.  Well, Ivan would love to just stare at him with his eyebrows all scrunched up, because thats what he does.  Yep, Ivan has quite a way of communicating with Uncle Stanton.

River of Chocolate

Spencer wanted to take Ivan fishing.  Spencer wanted to fish.  Spencer always wants to fish.  The snow was crazy so the fishing wasn't great as early as my boy wanted it to be.  He had fun trying to catch him some fish.  And I felt like we were in the Chocolate Factory.  Doesn't that water look like the chocolate river? 
Much fun for these boys, and their mama to be outside, to laugh, to take pictures. 
Ivan did not catch any fish on this, his first time fishing.  Here's to next time.

Ease

S

As I look at these photos from a short visit early this summer I try to think of words that come to mind.  Ease.  The easy way summer evenings unfold into adventures.  The ease of Childhood to live in the moment and enjoy everything that is in front of you right now.  The ease of childhood to really feel and express emotions as they happen.  The ease of laughter.

I *almost* didn't go enjoy this evening, I almost didn't agree when these kids decided to go hunt down pillows because they thought a pillow fight would be fun, I almost didn't find the motivation to get out the camera and go take these pictures.  I almost missed out.

Favorite yard sale finds from today

Found some great things at yard sales today!  Here are a few of my favorites:

 

How cute is this set of skillets?  I heart them.  I am pretty fond of fun bright colorful kitchen stuff.  I'm positive cooking will be all that much more fun with these!!

I'm also really very fond of old (or old style) dishes.  These plates I think are pretty groovy.  And a set of 5 for ten cents total?  Yes please.  Thank you! 

Really?! This awesome salad set for $4???  I was awfully happy to give it a new home!

And it doubles as a set of baby toys!  Perfect!

A couple of old fabric books for the littlest of my boys.  A set of Rings for that same little guy.  ( I already had the baby by the way, I didn't find him at a yard sale).

And something for the bigger boy...

Spencer has decided he collects glass bottles.  Notice I did not say old bottles.  Just glass bottles.  It is his new "thing".  So far his collection consists of a couple of Jones soda bottles, a rootbeer bottle, a whiskey bottle his dad gave him from fish camp, and our most recently emptied soy sauce bottle.  Yep, not picky.  Just glass bottles.  Soon I'll get photos of his collection and let him write about it.  I love that the soy sauce bottle made the cut.  Hopefully when he gets home from his big long cross country adventure he's on with his grandparents, he'll like these 2 new bottles to add to the bunch.
So all this stuff, and a few other things... for less than $20.  Oh how sad it will be when yard sale season ends.

Let's both win Pink Kitchen Aid mixers!

http://sweetopia.net/2011/08/raspberry-ice-kitchenaid-mixer-giveaway

Go to the link above to enter this contest.  For a Pink Kitchen Aid mixer!!  If you tell them you heard it from me we could BOTH win one!  I think this mixer (in any color:)  is what I've been hoping to find under the Christmas tree or wrapped up for my birthday for years now.  I think it would be so stinkin' fantastic to win one! 
If I win one I'll make you cookies.  If I like you.

Oh yum

Grandpa enjoyed this as much as Ivan did!  I wish this was a video instead of photos.  The thing missing is Ivan chatting and talking about his food and Grandpa laughing and laughing. 
Another milestone.  Food that comes from somewhere other than mommy's breasts.  Ivan started having rice cereal on June 10.  And had Sweet Potatoes on July 3rd, since then some other veggies and fruits and oatmeal have been added to the list.  He is getting more used to the idea, but still mostly a milk guy.

memorize the moment

This morning I was holding my sleeping baby, thinking that I should put him down and get some other things done as he'd be asleep for a while this naptime.  Before putting him down I tried to memorize the moment.  Really feel the weight of him laying on me, really smell his baby smell, feel the soft soft skin of his hand holding my finger and really listen to his breathing and watch his eyelashes flutter. 
Listening to his breathing is but one of the happy sounds my little one makes that I'm caught by.  I spend my days listening to the greatest happy sounds I can imagine.  He is the chattiest baby I've ever known, he coos and talks almost constantly.  So much to say!  And laughs so easily~ one of his aunties says he's a very outgoing baby.  A friend of mine pointed out that he can't resist a smile, even when he is sad or tired or trying to be grumpy about something, if someone smiles at him he can't resist and has to smile back and talk a little.  And oh those smiles of his!  They are full body smiles, they start in the eyes, work themselves all through him down to the toes and then back up again.

I know that if offered a time machine a mommy would sneak back to these moments once they have passed.

My lovey boy

This is what makes me smile.  My happy lovey boy.  Time speeding by so fast, not so much.
This blog has been in hibernation because I'm busy holding this little one.  Is there really a better use of time?  He will only be little for just this short time.
I'm trying much to enjoy the moments of my life even though I don't quite feel like 'me' and I've been struggling with depression and such. 
Just looking at this little face makes me realize that the most wonderful thing in the world is being 'mommy' though.

Thank you Auntie Lisa part 2~

So the same day I posted about the baby gift from Aunt Lisa this box showed up too!
We're pretty spoiled by her:)  Lots of fun Easter goodies for me and the boys.  So very much appreciated!  Such fun to open this and exciting to go through all the goodies!
Thank you Lisa!

Thank you Auntie Lisa!

Today as I was sorting through my photo file trying to decide what pictures I should print next I was reminded of this post I had started but not finished for my blog.  So here it is.  Later than panned (as happens when you have a baby, right:).
~~I was so very happily surprised when I talked to John the other night and he said I had a package waiting at the house.  I asked who it was from and he said there wasn't a return address.  When I got there and saw the package I thought "I'm sure that is my sister's handwriting"  But above my name was written ~(Gena Moon's daughter)~ so I thought maybe it was from a friend of my mom's or something?  I opened it to an envelope, and I was sure it was my sister's handwriting.  The excitement was crazy because, first, who doesn't love getting fun surprise mail?  and second, I had been thinking about my sister a ton and missing her so much, and wanting to talk to her.  
In the box were 2 BEAUTIFUL handmade baby afghans.  (and they smelled soooooo gooood too!  Like vanilla?  a little lavender?  Anyway, soooo good!  I was kind of sad to wash the good smell away:)

I love handmade gifts more than any other kind, and especially great stuff like this that can be saved and passed to Ivan's babies someday. 

Here are some pictures of baby Ivan enjoying his new blankies.

And a little update since I'm posting this a few months later than I planned when I wrote it:)  These have proved to be just the right size and weight to wrap Ivan up at night, just right so that after his last midnight snack he'll sleep longer than with other ones!  Amazing magical afghans!  These 2 and the one Suzy made him are my magical sleep trick!  We love them!!

3 generation burp cloths~

  For my spitty little boy I go through a bazillion burp cloths a day, and my collection of them is quite eclectic.  I have a bunch of store bought ones I got as gifts that are cute and do the job but my favorites are the handmade ones.  Folding laundry the other day I noticed this and thought it was pretty great~  I have some that my grandma made for my siblings and I when we were babies, I have some my mom made for my boys, and I have lots that I have made for Ivan.  It caught me as humorous that I have 3 generations of handmade burp cloths and I had to take the picture!
The one on the left is one my grandmother made, the middle my mom made for Ivan and the one on the right is one I made. 

Inventive with no crib

Our boy LOVES mobiles.  Really loves them.  Oh so much.  But this boy has no crib and the mobiles we have are not at all easy to attach to most things (would be super easy to attach to a crib). 

I realize there are probably more mobile options out there, that would attach to other things, but neither of the ones we have will.  We had to get creative. 

One is attached to a shelf above the pack and play.  And this one (that is oh so cool) didn't have a home, we have just held it for him to watch.  The point of a mobile though from this mommy's point of view, is to entertain for little stretches of time so I can do things that require my hands to be baby free.  Granted there aren't many things I do baby free these days (and that is fine by me, holding him is my favorite!)  But Anywho.... tonight we propped the mobile.  We did a spiffy job, no?  Leaning it just so on the carseat, and wallah...a favorite spot of his this evening was right there under his mobile.

Happy Weekend!

Happy Birthday to my Mom!

Belated Birthday that is.  She turned some age on the day Ivan turned 2 months.
This photo is from the collection of negatives I've scanned from my parents.  My parents best guess at my mom's age in this photo is mid-twenties.  I emphasize the word guess since it is a bit of a secret (a.k.a. guess) at her age now!
I love how happy she looks in this picture.  I said that to Spencer and he said "because it was before you and Stanton and Colin were born".  Ha!  Hopefully she had some happy days after we were born too! 
Happy Birthday Mom!  We love you!

Days full of love

Between not having my computer up and running and having this wonderful new little love to hold and snuggle all day this blog has kind of fallen into hibernation.  I thought I'd try to stop by and give a glimpse of what has been going on.  Really it has mostly been baby holding, baby feeding, baby rocking, baby changing, baby burping, baby smiles, baby picture taking.....you get the idea.

I know it is repeated so often by all parents everywhere but...I really can't believe how fast my baby is growing and changing!  It shocks me that he is growing without me seeing exactly the moment he changes since I stare at him almost 100% of the time! 

Our days are full of love for sure.  Passing in a blur but so full of love.