my boys

(Alternately titled, "Brady's one-finger salute")

4 months

The Brady bug will be 4 months old next Tuesday and has added a few new tricks to his repertoire.

Since he's been waking up hungry a few times during the night again - and also since he's, um, gigantic - we started solid foods this week. I decided to start with oatmeal instead of the rice cereal and he LOVES it....2 bowls in the morning and 2 in the evening. He's still waking up at least once during the night, but he nurses and goes right back to sleep. The oatmeal also seems to make him much happier during the day. Ms. Ingrida noticed that he's been less fussy at school - particularly after waking up from a nap. He'll lay there and just talk and entertain himself rather than immediately cry to be fed or picked up.
















He's also playing in the exersaucer now at school. I remember having to put towels all around Tate to support him at first, but Brady has a solid core and has no trouble sitting upright and even bouncing a little with his feet.

























Tate was crawling just 4 weeks from now when he was Brady's age. I'm hoping Brady will take things a little slower...I'm not ready for this baby to be grown up yet!

"dansey"

In case you didn't know, Dansey is the new Brangelina. Aunt Lindsey and Uncle Dan are huge celebrities around our house...especially in the eyes of their #1 fan. They fall somewhere just behind Buzz Lightyear and Woody on Tate's list of really important people...so, they're kind of a big deal.

For Christmas last year, they custom-designed and printed an awesome coupon book for us. Our coupons include:

- 3 free weeknight babysits
- 3 free weekend babysits
- 2 free overnight babysits
- 3 free diaper changes by Dan
- 3 free feedings by Lindsey
- 1 Buckhead Life Restaurant gift card

AND, they gave all of this to us even knowing that we were having another baby! So, you are probably drawing the same conclusion that we did - that they are either really thoughtful and generous...or completely crazy!

Last week was Dan and Lindsey's first experience with both boys on their own and I left them with the special instruction to just keep everyone alive between the hours of 6:30- 10:30pm. Not surprisingly, they did a little more than that. They got Brady fed, pajama'ed and down for the night by 7pm, and then spent the rest of the evening taking orders from playing with Tate by inventing activities such as the "teddy-bear" (pictured below) and the robot dance.

Tate and Brady are lucky to grow up with such a fun aunt and uncle and I look forward to redeeming the rest of our coupons over the next five months. And the best part is that they no longer need to worry about what to get us for Christmas anymore... we'll gladly accept our annual coupon book for the next 10 years! :)

terms of endearment (part 2)

Me: "Good-night, sweet Tate."

Tate: "Good-night, big Mommy."

(Here we are earlier in the evening eating at Menchie's. He requested pink ice cream.)

"emmy"

Our sweet niece Emilee is going off to college in just two weeks...but lucky for us, she'll be nearby at Kennesaw State. Tate loves "Emmy" and we are all excited that she will be able to come over often to play.

pink!

This is what happens when I'm left in charge....

eating out

In my twenties, I could eat out any night of the week and at any hour. I could have intelligent adult conversations, wear white pants, have free reign over both of my arms and legs, and eat my food while it was still hot.

In my thirties, I eat out only on occasion and always before 6pm. I talk about pee-pee in the potty and how many hours of sleep I got the night before. I wear clothes that I know can survive salsa stains. I almost always have someone sitting or sleeping on me. And I feed myself one-handed until I give up and get a take-out box to finish the rest at home.

I prefer my thirties. :)

sunday funday

What a beautiful day! It was in the 70's and breezy this morning, so I loaded up the boys and off we went on an adventure in the double stroller. Brady enjoyed a peaceful nap, while Tate spent some quality time in the sandbox. A Sunday funday, indeed...

golden slumbers

Golden slumbers kiss your eyes,
Smiles await you when you rise.
Sleep pretty baby,
Do not cry,
And I will sing a lullaby.

Cares you know not,
Therefore sleep,
While over you a watch I'll keep.
Sleep pretty darling,
Do not cry,
And I will sing a lullaby.

the tater head

Just wanted to share a few of Tate's latest phrases. He is a great little communicator and I still find myself amazed almost daily at things he says and does.

All a num (all of them)

I not (As in..."Tate, are you cleaning up your toys?" "I not")

All bodies (everybody)

That's enough (as in stop/knock it off)

Numbers!! (what he exclaims when he sees letters)

Just a minute

Wait for me

Let's go to the store, I want to buy something

Likes to eat "pops" (lollipops and popsicles)

He is getting better and better at keeping himself entertained and playing on his own. He likes to put out pretend fires, and pretend he's cooking and going to the store or going to work. His matchbox cars are his current favorite toy and there is one particular white ("wipe") one that he carries with him all the time and even sleeps with.

He likes to fix my hair, will ask if he can please get a haircut and he suddenly likes to have his fingernails and toenails clipped. He is very observant about what other people are wearing and will say things like "wow, mommy, are you wearing a dress?" He will also bring me the shoes from my closet that he thinks I should wear. It looks like I might have a future shopping and mani/pedi buddy in Tate. ha.

We've been having issues with him getting up several times during the night and coming into our room (after a year or more of him staying in bed through the night). Most times, one of us - lately Keith - will walk him back to his room and lay down with him until he falls back asleep. But sometimes, after a particularly rough night when all of us just want to sleep, we'll let him get in bed with us. I know it's not the best idea...but it's pretty hard to complain when he snuggles right up to me and wants to sleep with both arms around my neck.

We were also told today that he is the most polite, well-behaved kid in his class. You can't ask for much more than that! We're pretty proud of the person our little guy is turning out to be....

brady laughing

Ok, I caught it on video. But it's upside down and you have to listen to my annoying voice for the whole 34 seconds. Eesh.

P.S. No babies were harmed in the making of this video. He likes tickling.

tate's room

Tate's big boy room is finally finished!! He moved out of his crib waaaaay back in November, but with Brady on the way, his room wasn't top priority. We've gradually done things here and there and most recently, I painted the room red, ordered the new curtains and had my friend Aubrey paint the train pictures to match the bedding. I think it turned out pretty cute!

twinkle twinkle little STAR!!

Brady started laughing this weekend. It's a sweet, guttural, infectious laugh that I've yet to capture on video. I'm working on it.

So, the spotlight is back on Tate in the meantime. This is what he was doing last night instead of sleeping. With the iPhone video he can see himself while it's recording, so he's hamming it up a little more than usual. Sort of.

fireworks!

Fireworks on the 4th were rained out, so Ansley CC rescheduled them for last night. Kevin and Brooklyn met us down there and Brooklyn did a great job entertaining (aka wrangling) Tate for 3 hours. Brady stayed awake through the whole fireworks show and really seemed to enjoy them. Happy 9th of July!

pooper's birthday

Tate's friend Cooper from school turned two today. We had a fun time celebrating his birthday at Sweet Apple Park (despite the miserable heat)...

haircuts and chicken

We dropped Brady off at school this morning and Tate got to spend a few hours with mommy and daddy all by himself. He has been randomly begging and whining all week about getting a haircut, so we checked that off the "to do" list and then ate at Chick-fil-a. A good mommy would have known that today was cow appreciation day so that we could have all dressed like cows and gotten free food...oh well. Tate was terrified of the person walking around in the cow costume, so maybe it's just as well...might have been a scarring experience for us all.

his and hers

So, everyone knows that Tate looks a lot like Keith, but check out the pictures below. Maybe I have a mini-me, too??

definitions by tate - pt. 2

Grass (n) - The green stuff that grows outside. Also, what you put in your car to make it go.

I've noticed lately that he's been shoving handfuls of grass into the gas tank on his Cozy Coupe, and then last night he asked if "Daddy was putting grass in the car" when we stopped at the gas station to fill up. Love how his little brain thinks. Remind me to clear this up before he's 16...

the thumb-sucker

Brady just wanted to show off his recent talent. Even though it sometimes makes him gag, he's a much happier baby since he figured this out.

4th of july

To celebrate America's birthday this year, we...

...got up early and drove to Big Canoe





where we played with friends...


rode on scooters...


looked cute...




...and ate watermelon.

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Then, we headed to Atlanta...

where we went to the pool...

played on the porch during a thunderstorm...

dressed like mermaids for the neighborhood parade...







and stood under trees to stay dry from the rain.

And even though it rained on our parade (literally) and the fireworks were cancelled, we still had a wonderful day with friends and family. Happy 4th of July!