What beautiful boys!

Allow me to brag for a bit.

Last weekend we went down to Phipps Conservatory to see if we could get some pictures of the kids for our Christmas cards. Simon's 9 month birthday was yesterday so this doubled as his 9 month photo shoot. My girlfriend, Christy, who has recently started her own photography business came with us since her eye and equipment are far superior to my own.

Phipps was done up beautifully! I spent so much time taking it all in and encouraging the kids to look at Christy that I didn't take many of my own pictures of the decorations. I hope we can get back again before they take down the holiday decor and re-do the Thai gardens. It was peaceful and gorgeous and I'm sorry we haven't taken advantage of the gardens more often. Jesse had a good time running through the mazes and Simon liked exploring everything around him, including the dirt. Ah, boys and dirt! A match made in heaven!

I can't believe my Simon is 9 months old already! Yesterday I was off work and took the boys to Lilliput for a playdate with BFF (the group that spun-off from MoMo when it went bust a few days before Thanksgiving) and then to the pediatrician's for Simon's 9 month checkup. He's doing so well! He's a shorty - 27.5 inches long - but a chunker - 22 pounds on the nose. Jesse is 33 pounds. Almost time to turn him forward facing in his Boulevard since it only rear faces to 35 pounds. Both boys received a thimerisol-free flu vaccination. Neither boy shed a tear or made a peep with their injection. Freaky, huh?

Anyway, enjoy a sampling of the pictures Christy took. I love them! She really caught the boys' personalities!

It's like looking at a baby picture of me!

I love this one! Dear Santa: Bring me all the toys or Baby Brother gets it! Love, Jesse

Whirlwind weekend!

Whew! It wasn't fun getting up for work this morning, but I think I'll appreciate some peace and quiet at my desk today. This weekend kicked my butt!

Friday morning I hosted my first mom's group event. Seven moms and fifteen kids descended upon the firehall for a tour. The kids climbed all over the engines and rolls of hose, tried on fireman pants and boots, met Mr. Timmy and Mr. Eric (who were more than awesome, by the way) and then ate Subway sandwiches and cookies and ran around the back meeting room screaming and giggling. It was a blast! I met a bunch of new moms and everyone seemed to have a great time. I know Jesse was very proud to show off "his" firehall.

After trying to get the boys down for a nap for more than 2 hours, it was time to meet my parents for dinner. Despite being wound up and unnapped, both boys did great at Bob Evans. I had to take Jesse out once to talk to him about the difference between inside voices and outside voices. Otherwise, they were angels. Jesse's third two year molar popped through on Thursday too, so it's even more impressive how well behaved he's been.

Then off to the Pirates game. The first MLB game for either boy. What a fun time! Dan didn't come so it was me and the boys, my mom and dad, Jen, John, Johnny, Joseph (my older sister and her family), Ashley, Lee, Landon, Anna Lisa (my younger sister, her boyfriend and kids), and John's friend Chet and his girlfriend. We went to Guest Services to get Jesse a bracelet with his name and my phone number and his seat location. I told him it was his special bracelet for going to his first game and he wore it most of the weekend. He loved the game! He really liked the pierogie races even though our pick, Chester, didn't win. Simon enjoyed watching all the people and hearing the crowd. He nursed through a few innings and rode along in the mei tai.



We took the kids to the playground in the park and Jesse loved playing baseball with his cousins and climbing on the cool playground equipment. He was fired up! After that I was beat and needed to go. We got to the car just in time to catch a few of the fireworks (it was Skyblast which is a concert and fireworks after the game) and then saw more from the parkway. Both boys stayed awake the whole way home and Jesse screamed bloody murder in the shower with Dan. I can't blame him - it was after 10:30 at night - but a few neighbors asked what was wrong the next day.

Saturday I went with Beth to shop gyms. We've decided to join Club Julian. I'm excited! I really hope we have the determination to stick with it. I feel so much better when I am physical.

Then Dan and I and the boys were off to a luau in Monroeville for my mom's group, MoMo. It was at a lovely park with a great playground and baseball and soccer fields for Jesse to run. Simon and I played in the shade on a blanket, Jesse made a little girlfriend, and we ate wonderful food. The picnic was big so it was hard to talk to any one person for too long, but it was nice to see moms I've connected with before.

Sunday after visiting next door with the Lukeharts I made all my cleaners while Simon napped and Jesse played next door. Laundry soap, fabric softener, dishwasher detergent, disinfectant, all purpose cleaner, glass cleaner, fruit and veggie wash... I am done making cleaners for a while. It's nice to be done with all of that!

Later we took the kids to Eat 'N Park where they did great again. Jesse impresses me so often! Simon sat in a highchair with his kozypal cover to help hold him up. He is sitting up more and more these days! He got a little restless but then Jesse played a kind of peek a boo game with him. Jesse was looking across the table at Simon squealing, "What are you up to over there???" and Simon would peek from behind his toy suctioned to the table in front of him and giggle and screech. They were too cute together. They ended up with their chins on the table going back and forth, smiling, giggling, entertaining each other. Brothers! Awesome!

Off to play putt putt for the first time as a family. That was fun. I can't even tell you who enjoyed it most - Dan and I laughed at Jesse so much, Simon tried eating all the plants he came in contact with, Jesse loved his red golf ball and putter. We got ice cream at Dairy Queen afterwards and then came home to collapse into bed.

Wow! We have done so much this summer! It's been fun.

If asked how I am doing these days...

Well, Jesse is almost 2.5 so you can imagine how that is going... sweet as pie one minute (rolling over in bed and whispering, "You're a sweet girl, mama!" and kissing my arm) and then screaming like a freaking banshee the next minute ("I WANT A MOTORCYCLE TREAT!!!!" whatever the hell that is, we don't even have anything like that to give him!). Oy. But he's a blast and he's hilarious and imaginative and smart and I love seeing him display sympathy with Simon and I love how he gets so excited when Simon reacts to him.

Simon is just amazing. I swear that kid makes my heart swell up and pop a thousand and one times a day. I cannot believe my tear ducts have anything left in them. I cry so much just looking at him looking back at me with that sweet smile. He's an instant bad mood fixer and the way he snuggles into me just melts me every single time. I cannot get enough of him.

My favorite moments are when I have both boys in bed or in the rocker and I can just move my head back and forth smelling two sweet heads, feeling two warm little bodies nestle into me, see those big blue eyes look up at me when Jesse whispers "I love you, mama" and see those huge brown eyes look up at me and then that big grin on Simon's face. I used to say that having a baby was the best thing Dan and I ever did. Now I can add to that having another baby because Simon has just enriched all our lives.

Outside of loving up on my boys I am just working and running myself ragged cramming so many activities and fun into our summer. I am swamped with mom's group outings and family fun. I'm like Carol Freaking Brady on the weekends and Terry Garr in Mr. Mom M-F. I might pass out soon.

Busy bees

I need a break from my weekends!

Last summer I was so bored and felt like I was boring to Jesse so I sought out a mom's group. And I found one. I joined Modern Moms in hopes of finding some playdates or fun activities to do with Jesse. It took a while for us to attend our first event and we went to the Class of 2024 Preunion at Chuck E. Cheese in January of this year. All the moms were so nice to us and we really had a great time! We've been more active in the group since and when we have time we look on the calendar to see what's going on.

Through MoMo I have found a few other mom's groups. We also now belong to 30-Something Moms, an AP mom's group, and now MOM - Moms of McCandless. Between the pajama brunches, backyard water play, Saturday morning movies, picnics, working mom lunches and park playdates, my head is spinning! Jesse is having a blast though and I have learned not only to nurse in any sort of situation but also to nurse on the run as I chase Jesse around with Simon sucking away. I'm having a great time too meeting all kinds of moms from different walks of life. I've connected with a few moms whose company I really enjoy. And we've done activities and visited places we might never have done or seen otherwise.

But, wow, are we busy!!! July was a whirlwind with two, sometimes three, events per week (in addition to working full time!). This past weekend one group had a picnic at 12:00 and another had a picnic at 3:00 so rather than choose, we did both! We left the house at 11:30, attended both picnics, stopped by the hospital to visit with Daddy for a bit since he worked two 12 hour shifts this weekend, and rolled back home around 6 pm. The kids were awesome! Jesse was a bit of a beast at bathtime, but I somehow managed to get myself fed (Jesse refused dinner with a tantrum), both kids bathed and all of us piled into bed together before our usual weekend bedtime hit.

Jesse has been having a wonderful summer! All these playdates are rocking his world. Add in Kennywood with my family ("I go with all my cousins, mama!"), Chuck E. Cheese on a day it was too hot to do anything else, parties, camp with Daddy, the campground with mama and Simon, his first hotel overnight stay, his first Pirate game coming up this week... This kid's calendar is off the charts!

We're just having a lot of fun! I can sleep when I'm dead, right?