The Boys First Salad

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I've been trying to branch out this summer and have the boys try new things. They are both picky in different ways but they will almost always try something at least once. So I made a big salad (and homemade pickles) and gave it a shot. I was pleasantly surprised at how well they took to it. I think I was secretly hoping if they loved it that would help me to eat more salads!

My Little Helper

Not sure if it's a first born thing or just Cooper but he LOVES to help me around the house! It's actually very helpful sometimes! He does like to tell on Bear a lot so we have a saying, "Who's the momma?" He'll look down all sad and mopey and say, "You are." He loves to be in charge :-)

Silly Goose

Bear is styling with his 3D glasses that came with some sidewalk chalk. I think he wore these for at least a week. My favorite term to call them when they do something silly is to say, "You goose!" Cooper will correct me and say, "No Bear's a silly goose!"

Daddy Train

Vegas Baby

Man this feels like it was SO long ago. I thought I had blogged this but just found all of these pictures saved but not posted! I don't even remember when this was but in the beginning of the year before Jim left the country they got to spend a few days in Vegas. My neighbors Jim and Kelly were amazing and offered to watch the boys. (Still not sure how we got so lucky!) We had an amazing suite from Gene and Kathy and really had the time of our lives! We gambled, watched an amazing show- Ka from Cirque, walked a lot and gambled a lot. I really wanted to do the zip wire adventure but there was mix up and they were actually booked so that's first on my list next time we go there! As much as I know the boys miss Jim the memories from this trip have gotten me through many a night!

Our Garden and Yard

We've been hard at work learning the ins and outs of what it takes to up keep our yard and garden. In the spring I was feeling pretty good about how easy it might be. Let the flowers bloom and die off, weed a little and mow the lawn. A month later and all heck has broken loose!

First we started with pruning all of the trees. When I mowed the lawn I was getting beat up from all the long branches from all the trees on the perimeter. I found a tool for cutting branches off thinking I'd cut a few of them off. What I thought would take 30 minutes turned into a whole day affair. To get the branches high enough to not hit me when mowing I had to keep chopping and chopping and chopping. Our oak tree (at least that is what I think it is) is massive and was drooping to the ground! Then my neighbor brought over his chain saw and hacked off a few long limbs for us from several trees. I was told to make a fire and use the soot for the garden..... huh? I collected enough for 3 massive bon fires. (We do have some un-used land behind us and I admit that I secretly threw some of the pine tree limbs over the brush!) I was scared to do a bon-fire by myself but a quarter of the yard was being taken up so I finally just bit the bullet and started burning.

Next was our garden. Bebba was awesome and helped us get it started. Then my neighbor Kelley offered up a few of her extra tomato plants. Debbie and Mark (really Mark) helped me put a nice fence around our garden. I was eager to plant more veggies so I got 8 cherry tomato plants from Kelley and bought some more zucchini, peppers, cucumbers and melons as well. (Remind me to tell you about this trip as it was the first, and hopefully last, time I've lost Cooper in a store- it was traumatic.) We had to buy a bunch of large pots and potting soil and stakes for the tomato plants. When I got it all home I thought hey it would take maybe an hour! Again it was an ALL day task.

Then came weeding out the flower beds. That was a 4 hour job at least once a week. If I wasn't so against it I could see spraying stuff to keep the weeds at bay! We also have a Mimosa tree that sprouts out little tress ALL over our yard. We have a few that obviously took hold a few years ago against the base of the house and a few that are trying to grow under our deck. We took a full afternoon to go hunting these little seedlings to pull them up so we wouldn't have random trees growing all over the yard. 9Didn't matter as they have popped up ALL season long.) Then we had to take out a tree that was growing in the azaleas and pull out half of the ivy that is taking them over. My neighbor suggested pulling all of the ivy out now but after a full large trashcan full of ivy I was done. I haven't even hit the other side of the front yard that has poison ivy in it. That may be one of those wait for the hubster to come home on that one.

But I can say now with pride that we had a nice garden this year as well as a little patio garden. Being that this is our first year doing a garden I just wanted to try it all out. I learned a lot about placement of the plants and lost all my zucchini and squash to a random tree growing in the middle and to mold. We got about 3 peppers and about 10 cucumbers and a nice amount of tomatoes. Not enough to not have to go shopping but I think with what I've learned next year will be a lot better.

The other concern was the 7 deer, an enormous amount of rabbits, wild turkeys, a fox. We had an issue with mole holes ALL over the yard for a few weeks and then they disappeared. The boys loved to help me water and weed the garden. Bear likes to sit on the ledge and talk to the cucumbers. He also likes to pull all the tabs I put in the ground that tell me what is what and change them but that's another story :-)

I feel like we wasted a lot of good compost material so we went and bought a compost bin last week and are working on filling it up so that will be another learning experience for us!! In just a few days the boys are already used to keeping their scraps for the composter. It's amazing to me just how quickly they adapt!

White Lightning

When we purchased this house (or Peggy Sue as the boys call her) it came with a small riding mower. They said it probably needed a belt to get her started. As spring approached and the grass started to grow I realized I had NO idea how to get this thing started or repaired. I got a referral for someone to come mow for me but he wanted to charge $75 each week!! That wasn't going to happen so my neighbors across the street took a look at my mower and determined that it was something with the starter and said they'd let me know what part to order. They got busy and didn't get a chance so another good Samaritan looked at it and said it was the starter block and said when I found one to let him know he'd put that on.


I went to a parts store for all things mechanical. The parts were just about as much as the mower was worth. I left wondering what I should do and wishing I knew which part to get. I decided I was going to take matters into my own hands and call Sears. They came out and said it would cost over $500 just to fix the starter but they weren't even sure that was the problem. They left without fixing it but charged me $100 just for the 10 minute visit! In the mean time my next door neighbors let me borrow their riding mower. That was so generous of them but I didn't want to take advantage so the next time I used the little push mower that came with the house. It took me over 5 hours to mow and I think I had just as many blisters. I did not do that again!!

So then yet another neighbor said he'd look at it (he's a mechanic) when he got a chance. (Have I mentioned how lucky I am to have such amazing neighbors??) It turned out it was not the starter and he fixed it and gave it a full tune up........

So I was on our very own riding mower and feeling very grateful to everyone who'd been a part of the drama of getting it fixed! The only thing was it sounded like I was riding a go kart on a bad acid trip. Not sure what that sounds like? It goes putt putt putt PUTT POP!!! and I would then jerk forward getting minor whip lash. It was so bad that two of the neighbors came over trying to tinker with it but they agreed it didn't sound good at all. My mechanic neighbor came over and he laughed saying that it was fine I was just driving it too fast. (I didn't believe him!) They all got a good laugh over that as it turns out they all noticed how fast I drove the riding lawn mower. Since none of them have toddlers running around while mowing I don't think they understand my intent is to get it done as quickly as possible before they trash the house when I'm not looking!

So the next time I drove it super slow. I thought I was going to crawl out of my skin it was so slow. I was trying to appreciate the gorgeous day but the putt putt putt PUTT POP and jerk forward every 10 seconds was even worse going slowly. I'd gotten about halfway done when all of a sudden it started purring. I was ecstatic. I sat up higher thinking, "Yes this is it, now I can roll!" It went for about 10 feet then it POPPED and a black cloud of smoke came out. I was able to putt my way to the shed and stored it in there. Little did I know but that was the last time I'd ever ride him again.

I went to borrow my neighbors mower and as I turned it on the belts fell off leaving it useless to me until they showed me how to put them back on. It did this not once but two separate occasions. The second time I just threw my hands up and went to Sears. I walked in and there he was just waiting for me. Maybe knowing the history of this summer you can imagine him as I did. There was a light shining down from heaven and all of the other mowers just faded away. I might have heard some singing. It get's better- he was on sale and I bought the service plan too so if he breaks down in the next three years someone has to come out to fix him and I don't have to feel so helpless! I even got approved for the no payments no interest for 6 month deal. It was destiny.

I had a full gas can waiting on the day he was delivered. The delivery guy rolled him down the driveway and I think I skipped a little to meet him. I sat on him for a while just smiling and did a few test runs. He turns on a dime and handles the ditches like a pro. No more getting stuck for me in the ditch! I did fail to read the instructions (I was sitting on them while mowing) the first time and he would shut down with a loud pop every time I went into reverse. Turns out for safety reasons this is a new feature they've installed where you have to turn the key to a certain position to mow in reverse.

I think I might have a bit of a crush on my riding mower. Did I mention he has a cup holder? Bear saw him and dubbed him, "White Lightning." I will admit to having a bit of an obsession right now with the riding mower but hey my husband has been gone for 10 months- cut me some slack :-)

Good ol Gold's

When we moved to Raleigh a new Gold's Gym opened up just 2 miles from where we lived. I started taking classes there and they were the first place that I was able to leave my boys and get any time to myself. At a certain point another mom pointed out that if I worked a few hours at the day care I could get my gym membership for free. So that began our time working at the day care. Then we moved out to Apex and our schedule just could not quite recover. We had to leave to go to work right in the middle of Bear's nap times. It took about 25 minutes to get there. Can't say those were good times :-) We started to leave early so they'd nap in the car ride over and we'd sit for an hour in the parking lot while they slept and I read. That was not fun once it started getting hot. Sometimes I could transfer Bear to the movie room to continue his nap.





Poor guy this one little girl tortured him with the drum over his head while he was trying to sleep. At a certain point I began to think that it might be worth it to just go back to paying for a membership. Just as I started to think about that I saw a commercial for Military One Source. They mentioned that we could get a free membership at the YMCA. We just had one open less than 2 miles away! We went and did a tour and fell in LOVE with it. I just loved the kids everywhere and it was so much more family oriented. They do activities with the kids and don't just put them in front of the tv- it was really a nice place. So I quit Gold's that night we've been at the Y ever since. The boys are funny- if I say we are going to the "gym" they think it's Gold's. I have to tell them we are going to the Y or they are not happy campers!

Brotherly Love

I have been diligently updating the blog and as usual the boys were hanging out with me in the office. (I've realized lately that they follow me just about anywhere I go in the house unless they are eating.) There was a rare moment where they were silent so I started to look around for what they were getting into. Much to my surprise they were just hugging each other!!



They do fight some but I have to say the majority of their time is spent being pretty darn adorable. They've climbed under my desk now telling me they are hiding till I'm done. Bear sat up and knocked his head. Cooper immediately said, "Ohhhhhh here let me kiss it." Gave him a big kiss and a big hug. Then Cooper said, "Come on little puppy. Look Momma I'm being gentle- take a picture!" I sure do hope they remember this when they get older.

Backyard Picnic

The boys were begging me to pack a picnic so we could go to the "Frog Pond" and play at the playground. We are so lucky to have Crowder Park across the street but with this lovely weather they are wanting to spend many hours over there. I can't get them to play on our playground for anything lately! I was not interested in packing yet another picnic so I asked if they wanted to have a picnic in our backyard. They LOVED it. It was so perfect with the breeze and our freshly mowed grass. We sat on a sheet and had our dinner. The funny part was they couldn't decide how to sit. They tried laying down. (Bear followed Cooper's lead.) They tried hovering. They tried sitting up. It didn't matter they made a mess each way but it was still fun. Of course after we were done they still wanted to go to the "Frog Pond" so off we went but I didn't have all those extra dishes to clean :-)

Fancy Hair Cuts

Much to my friend Jamie's dismay I've been cutting the boys hair for some time now. We go out on the back deck and let the hair fly. Some hair cuts have been better than others but I have been proud that I didn't need to shave their heads to make up for some mistake I made. Their hair has been getting long and I was mentioning to them to get ready we're going to cut your hair again soon. Usually I get, "Ok!!!" But this time Cooper looked at me and said, "I'm sorry but I have to get my hair cut by a barber." (I'm not convinced Jamie hasn't gotten to him but I think pre-school is the culprit for this one.) S o off to the "Barber" we went. Well it was our version of Hair Cuttery called Great Clips. We had a bit of a wait and they happened to have 1 children's book in the waiting area. It was all about this little girl who likes to make everything "fancy". Cooper then said, "Do you think she can give me a fancy haircut?" I told him to ask. No joke Cooper climbed up in her seat and said, "I want a fancy hair cut please." After they were done (with 4 other men in the waiting area) Cooper yells, "I LOVE MY FANCY HAIRCUT!" They were all trying really hard not laugh. They were all reading their magazines but their shoulders were shaking. It was beyond comical. It's been a week and he's still asking me if his haircut if fancy :-)

Happy Birthday Lauren

Happy Birthday Lauren!! We love you!

4th of July (2009)

We celebrated 4th of July this year by making our way to downtown Apex for the day. We got there as they were opening and got to watch them raise the flag and honor our soldiers which I thought was pretty cool.

This was a little train ride that I think the line to get on was longer than the actual train ride itself but they boys enjoyed riding through the alleys of Apex and squealed when he did his zig zag.
The boys had a ball meeting the fire fighters and playing on the old fire trucks.

We spent the majority of the morning inside a moon bounce shaped like a train that had a big slide at then end. Because we got there so early there was no line so the boys just kept going and going and going. Cooper was all about the slide. Bear stayed inside a lot holding on to the ropes inside as the other kids bounced him around.



After the moon bounce, the train ride, riding fire trucks, listening to kids karaoke, and watching everyone get face paint the boys decided that they wanted to ride the really, and I mean really, big slide. The one that they have a rope to help you climb up. I don't know why I didn't get any pictures. I have be honest I thought once they got in the line and had to wait the 40 minutes we did they wouldn't want to go. Cooper was determined though and as soon as Bear saw Cooper going up he had to go. It was all so very chaotic. The poor girl manning the back had to keep the flow going so I didn't give me any time to hem and haw. That meant I had to go because Bear wouldn't go up the ladder alone. That was the most pressure I've felt in a very long time! The line was SO long behind us with anxious kids. There was no time to even get prepared up top or to even look around and get scared. We plopped down on the little potato sacks and off we went. Coop had no fear he beat us down. Bear and I came barreling down and they both said, "Let's do it again!" Luckily they both had to go to the bathroom and forgot about it!! We left then for a picnic lunch at Hemlock Park. We were rebels! They say no food but we did it anyway. Then that afternoon we did sparklers and they were out before it was even dark!

Say Cheese

Monihan Visit

Kat, John, Lauren and Andrew came for a weekend visit this August. The boys loved having them here and every time we are out at a store want to buy something for Lauren or Andrew it's quite adorable. Cooper also liked helping his Aunt Kat feed Andrew his bottle.


We'd had a bit of rain before their visit and we noticed that birds were taking a bath in the gutters. John was kind enough to get the ladder and find a very old tennis ball clogging the drain and cleared it out for us. (He also fixed my leaking hose issue, put together the soccer goal nets and figured out how to replace a light bulb in the boys bathroom that had been blinking for weeks!!)

They also brought along one of the best toys of all time. This little air rocket launcher was a huge hit. You step on the air bag and the styrofoam rocket goes shooting into the air. As you will see in the video below Cooper figured out how to get the most bang for his buck.

Brotherly Love

Chicken Man

Coop running around squawking like a chicken :-)

Captain America

There is a new obsession in our house and it's being a super hero. Cooper loves to be:

• Superman
• Sporticus
• Captain America
• Spider Man
• Wolverine

He doesn't even know who any of them are except for Sporticus (but I haven't ruined it and told him that he doesn't count!) Bear on the other hand likes to be Robbie Rotten or just anybody who needs help. He yells, "Help!!!" over and over letting Cooper come save him. The first few times I admit to a bit of panic hearing his cries for help.

We had to do a bit of shopping the last two weeks. They both got new shoes, socks, pajamas and underwear. It was time for Coop to upgrade to the 4T underwear. Well that started a pretty major ordeal in our house over having to have the exact same pajamas and underwear as the other. (They used to wear these adorable zip up jammies. Now that they are "big boys" and they get to get out of bed when they want to use the potty so those just do not work for them.) So they have these totally overpriced super hero underwear and I'm trying to hold the hard line that only Cooper needs new underwear but they are not having any of it. None of this is really that important to the story other than it was a pretty dern big deal buying these underwear.

Every morning for the past week they have picked which super hero they want to be. Cooper won't look at his though he only wants to put them on and then turn so I can tell him which hero he is wearing. Today he was wearing Captain America which was red to match his red shorts. Late this afternoon I had some packages to take to the UPS store. We've instituted a lovely game where they can earn 5 stars and get a prize. Today's star was for how quiet they could be at the UPS store. They were whispering and tiptoeing, it was very cute. As the clerk was telling me how I could track Jim's package I heard Cooper talking very quietly to a woman behind me. I turned and he had pulled down his pants and was showing her his Captain America underwear!!!! (The odd thing was she was encouraging him to do it and telling him it was ok as I was snatching his pants up!)

Cooper said, "But Momma I was only showing her Captain America!!" So Bear not being one to be left out pushes down his shorts and says, "Look no underwear just my penis!!"

Blurgh!

Big Hair

I'm not sure why but I thought it would be fun to try some styling gel to see if I could create the Robert Pattison effect :-)