Cake!

Last Saturday Everett and I went to celebrate our friend Abigail's second birthday. The theme was ladybugs and it was so cute. Everett was very excited that there would be cake. The birthday girl.

We actually managed to get a picture with all the kids (there was a promise of cake to follow).

Everett had a great time! I am sure there will be a lot of birthday parties ahead.

Pool Side

Our friend Alicia invited us to go swimming in her subdivision's pool again today. We have a pool in our subdivision, however I love this one because they have a baby pool. We also love "Ms Licia's" company. Everett jumped right in this time and Hampton was a little apprehensive. He walked around in his float and then sat on the side of the pool splashing and looking for airplanes. After we swam we ate lunch in the cabana.

Hampton loves a jelly sandwich!
And Everett ate peanut butter and jelly. They ate a great meal. I think the sun just wears everyone out.

Hampton is getting more and more hair these days. It is staying blond and is just a mess of curls. I love it.

There may be something to those swimmie diapers. I think Hampton's diaper added about 10 pounds.

They are now sleeping upstairs and I believe that I secured a long nap. The sun, the water, the activity, the big lunch.....it did them in!

Brothers

These pictures were taken with my camera phone, so the quality isn't great, but I had to capture these moments.

"Sometimes being a brother is even better than being a superhero." Isreal Sangwill
"There is no other love like the love for a brother. There's no other love like the love from a brother." Terri Gulliemets

"A brother shares childhood memories and grown-up dreams." Author unknown

Our Boys of Summer

Saturday morning we visited the arboretum. We got there almost right as it opened and enjoyed a couple of hours playing and exploring. Eric was our main photographer and captured some great pictures of the boys, thus the picture overload.

Overcoming Fears

Everett overcame a fear the other day and I am so proud of him. This entire summer he has not wanted to go swimming in our subdivision's pool. I understand that a "big pool" can be intimidating and so I never pushed him. However, our friend Alicia's subdivision pool has a child's size so we decided to try it out. The whole way there I talked to Everett about how it is good to try new things. When we got there he was apprehensive at first, but within 10 minutes he was in. He hasn't put a toe in a pool all summer, so this was great. Granted it was about a foot deep, but you have to start somewhere right?

Here is Everett with his sweet friend Abigail.
He had a blast! We were there for two and a half hours and I kept having to put sunscreen on him. After we swam we had a picnic lunch at the tables by the pool. He was sad to leave, but I told him we would come back soon. On the way home he said things like "that was so fun" and "swimming isn't scary" and even "it is good to try new things." Lesson learned and I am so glad there was such great reward for the risk that it was for him.

From the Mouth of a 3-Year Old

Having a three year old is fun and challenging at times. One thing I love is some of the things Everett says. Here are a few examples:

After dressing himself: "Mommy I am beautiful!"
While outside in the 90 degree weather: "Mommy, it is too hot outside. The sun is burning my eyes."
On (pretend) sickness: "I am sick. My belly is sore. I may have a fever."
On Hampton: "He is my baby. He is mine. I love him." (Needless to say, 2 seconds later he swipes the toy he is playing with and runs off.) He also says Hampton is his best friend.
On Mommy: "Mama you're pretty. I like your neck-a-lace."
On Eleanor: "Eleanor lives in Mama's belly. She is a ballerina."
On helping: "I am a helper boy!"
On chocolate: "I love chocolate. It's my favorite."
When he is worried: "It'll be fine. It'll be okay. There is no reason to cry. I not scared."

We got Everett and Hampton a play house recently. It is so funny to sit back and listen to the dialogue that Everett provides for the daddy, mommy, and baby. Somehow the mommy and daddy end up in time-out a lot!

Saturday

Yesterday we purposed to stay home, play, and rest. Mission accomplished. We had a great day together as a family. We made pancakes with blueberries for breakfast. We played in the playroom. We lunched. We napped. And we painted.

Hampton wasn't thrilled with the idea.
Everett however was all about it. He loves to paint.

Hampton opted to just paint himself.

Thus resulting in a sink bath while the sun poured into our kitchen. So sweet.

He loved it.

I now know what to do when he gets fussy. Put him in the sink.

We ended the day with having breakfast for dinner: eggs with cheese, grits, biscuits and gravy, and veggie sausage. So good. And we ate until we couldn't eat anymore. Baths and bed. Full and happy day it was. We need more days like this and we fully plan on more ahead.