Thursday, July 31, 2008

Never A Dull Moment

We'll be on vacation this upcoming week -- heading out of town and not sure if we'll have internet access, so hopefully the stories and pictures in this post will tide you over for a while...

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During his 4-month well-visit this past week, we found out that Jesse falls in the 95th percentile in weight, height, and head circumference. Yousers!

You'd think because he's so big that he'd prefer to just lie around like a lazy blob, but he's actually quite active and feisty. Lately his big thing is arching his back to let us know that he wants us to change the scenery and also turning from side to side (or turning over, as the case may be) to get to what he wants. I often wake up in the night to find him lying in a different position from the one we placed him!

We love how he's reaching out with his tongue in the picture below:



We finally have a baby who likes to be passed around from person to person and what happens? His big brother becomes very protective and insists that Mama or Papi take him back! We've learned lately that asking for Lucas's permission first (!!!) before letting someone else hold him sometimes works. Sheesh.



Mama has started speaking in English to Lucas (Papi continues with the Spanish) to help him more quickly transition to preschool in September, and he amazes us with how much he's already picked up in the last couple of months. Yesterday at the park we were playing with a large rubber ball that someone left behind when Lucas exclaimed with much drama, "Mama, this is the biggest ball we've ever had!" He also knows all of the words to his current favorite song "In My Life" by the Beatles.

He's still into interlocking puzzles like the one below:


In the 2 weeks that Lucas has been potty training, we've had 8 consecutive accident-free days! (And yesterday he used the big potty instead of the little potty! What an accomplishment!) The hard part is pulling down those cute tighty-wities in time, so we mostly go commando throughout the day to help him out in these early stages of learning...


Lucas is still excited about showers. He asks us at least twice a day if he can take one, even though he knows full well that we take them after dinner:

Showering has seemed to help him finally feel confident about getting his head soaked and playing in the baby pool:



Speaking of water, this next shot was supposed to catch my boys bathing together, but the show was over just as soon as it started...

Right after I took the picture, Lucas accidentally splashed some water on Jesse's face, which startled Jesse and made him start to fuss. Then Lucas's excitement and exuberant silliness made him squeal with joy a bit too loudly in Jesse's ear, which startled Jesse again. Jesse then began to cry, which in turn made Lucas cry ("Mama, help Jesse be happy again, PLEASE!").

There I was squatting ankle-deep in warm water with two wailing kids staring back at me, wondering what the heck just happened.

So much for special moments!



Here are the boys with their aunt, uncle, and cousin at an indoor playground. Lucas insisted that Liam and Tata were hungry and kept bringing them play food.



And finally, we lovingly call this picture "Getting To Eat Dinner In Peace." Thanks, Jes!

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

There's Nothing Sweeter

(Except for maybe when they both take a midday nap at the same time...)




Sunday, July 27, 2008

Community Supported Agriculture


After 3 years of work, we finally have a CSA option in our neighborhood! We host it at our church and Papi is a site coordinator, so on most Saturdays if the weather is good, the boys and I meet him there just as they're closing up shop for the week.

Lucas was enjoying some of the harvest when he gave me this pose after I asked him to smile:



He didn't seem satisfied with that, so he ran up to me and gave me this pose:



Jesse is so ready for a nap but he's hangin' in there!


Future graffiti artist?


Looking for grubs in our composter:



But getting a whiff instead:



Helping to water the plants:


And speaking of the church, almost a year (to the date!) after the tornado blew out the original stained glass windows, check out the restoration work that's been going on!

Saturday, July 26, 2008

Four Months

We made it! We're past the so-called 'fourth trimester,' although in some ways it feels like we skipped the newborn phase altogether because you're so darn big! Who knew having a newborn could be this much fun?! Not a day goes by that we don't thank you for being here with us, Jesse!



Thursday, July 24, 2008

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Monday, July 21, 2008

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Exersaucer

Hanging out in his big toy:

Still a bit big, even for this Chunker:

Lucas loves to show him how it's done:

Jesse's much more interested in watching his entertaining brother:

Notice the underwear on Lucas? We're deep into potty training, and he's doing great!

In other bathroom-related news, Lucas the eternal bathtime hater has discovered that he loves to take a shower! ('Cause it's just like the sprinklers in the park.) Why didn't we think of it earlier?!

Saturday, July 19, 2008

Thursday, July 17, 2008

U-Pick

Get ready for lots of photos. I'm feeling too lazy this morning to download them into a slideshow.

Yesterday we borrowed Tata and Tio's car and took a little road trip, during which Lucas learned new vocab words such as "highway," "toll booth," and "parking lot" and insisted on hearing the same two songs over and over again.

We then spent the morning at a local-ish New Jersey farm picking fruit and had a wonderful time!


The first raspberry:


Lucas was such a great farmer, helping Mama to pick raspberries all the way down the long rows:



Stealing a taste before we pay. He was very patient, but how can you tell a toddler (or a Mama and Papi) to wait for so long?!


Lucas loved popping his head in and out of these, so we caught a few shots:



Our sweet pumpkin:


Our other sweet pumpkin:

Peach-picking season began on that day, so it was off to the peach trees afterwards:


Lucas was very focused (or maybe just really hot and wanting to finish up already):


The farm had rabbits and horses and goats (oh my!) for petting and chickens for feeding:


Finally enjoying our bounty, as well as the delish homemade blueberry ice cream:


Just hanging out and being cute:


The measure of a really good time, as well as a satisfying moment for Papi and Mami:



We'll be back in the fall for apples and pumpkins!