Halloween

So, I know it is completely out of order and random to post on December 17, but I am just going to have to get over my OCD a little if I am ever going to get this blog back up and running.

This year, the boys were Thing 1 and Thing 2 for Halloween. One day in September, Jacob tells me he is going to be Thing 2 and Luke is going to be Thing 1 this year. (A new show on PBS - "The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That" had a lot to do with his choice this year!) I thought it was a great idea and jumped right in to finding the perfect costumes.

Thankfully, the site, Etsy, exists. I was able to go on there and request the costumes, and someone made them just for the boys. To say I LOVED them, was an understatement.

They got so many compliments and "oh how cute" or "how clever"

Looking at their costumes this year, got me thinking to costumes of years past:

2009

20082007

2006

Skills to work on

In keeping with my goal to get at least one blog entry posted each day until I get caught up, here is one from the week of Oct. 11-17

I have recently had people make comments to me on how well Luke speaks for a 2 year old. I haven't really paid much attention, but since both kids talk ALL the time, it makes sense how great Luke's speaking skills have become and what a great vocabulary Jacob has.

I helped in Jacob's class this week and he never stopped talking. It was during center time and he was just talking talking talking. I've been told it is a sign of intelligence...

Luke's soft spot still hasn't closed, but a check with a neurologist has us unworried about it for now.

This week was preschool open house which gave me a chance to see the boys' work in school and find out what we needed to work on. Jacob needs to work on printing and cutting right now.

We had a birthday dinner for Mindy at our house with the whole family-FUN!

Luke loves to copy Jacob and sometimes the reverse happens.

They also love things to be the same so we are in the "two of everything' phase here.
Here are the pictures from the week.

Reading Class and ABCs

Totally out of order in my catch-up posts, but here is one from the week of Sept 27-Oct 3;

School is in full swing. This week was picture day at school. Still waiting on how they turned out. Once we get them, I will scan them and post.The weather is still warm enough for shorts/tshirts and park visits in the evening. The boys love to get outside and climb. And of course, little brother has to follow in big brother's footsteps!

I signed Jacob up for a highly recommended reading class this Fall and he had the first class this week. He had a great time and learned 3 sight words on day 1! I can't believe he's taking strides to start reading.

Since we went out of town Saturday to Saturday, Jacob missed his first 2 soccer games. He jumped right back into the swing of things though for his first soccer game and did great. Even got to play goalie for a quarter!

Jacob is doing better playing with friends lately, not getting so riled up or physical as often, remaining calm. I'm so glad to see this change. He still loves active play with friends, but fewer tears is nice.

Luke is still in the stage of playing alongside other kids most of the time, though he does actually play with Jacob (when he lets him!)

Luke now tries to sing his ABCs. He has the tune and some of the letters down, but not all. Like Jacob, his learning is backwards from most. He has been able to identify all the letters by sight for a few months now and knows about half of the letter sounds too, but can't sing the song.

Not potty training yet, but Luke shows interest in going diaperless and using the potty. It is mama who just isn't quite ready to work on the training yet!
Here are the pictures from the week.

What are we doing tomorrow?

Going back a few months to upload a post I started about the week of Aug.9-15;

I can hardly believe we are halfway through August, the summer has gone by quickly. I'm not even sure I could tell you all the things we did but I know it was a lot. On days we didn't have as much going on, we did fun things at home like a picnic lunch (inside on a towel/blanket to stay cool!)

Perhaps it is genetics or perhaps it is just what they know, but my boys are like me in that we can't just sit idle for very long. Every night before Jacob goes to sleep he asks what we are doing the next day. He is never satisfied with "I don't know" or "nothing"

This week the heat really started spiking, 100 at our house everyday. The gym is our first stop of the day, a win-win for all since the boys enjoy it there and I get a good workout in.

This week besides gymnastics (plus a make up class) we hit up an indoor bounce place,

Chuck E Cheese,

and a splashpad with friends. Add in a visit to our local pool and we kept busy and cool. We also tried out a new local play place a couple of weeks ago and had fun but I was disappointed in the number of "big" kids causing trouble. I am ready for public school to start!

Luke's fingers have been stuck in his mouth constantly the last few weeks. I am wondering if he is getting some new molars, but so far, we haven't seen anything yet.

Here are the pictures from the week.

2 Year Stats

Luke had his 2 year well-check today and he is doing great. He's met all the milestones for a 2 year old, and even the ones for a 2 1/2 year old. Here are his stats:
Weight - 28 lbs - 50%
Height - 33 3/8 in- 20-25%

Just as a comparison, these were Jacob's stats at the same age: Weight - 30.5 lbs - 80%
Height - 34 in - 35%

Happy 2nd Birthday Luke!

Happy Birthday to my sweet boy!

Luke at 7:51am on July 7, 2008

Luke at 7:51am on July 7, 2009

Luke at 7:51am on July 7, 2010

Sleeping Boys

While uploading pictures today, I saw this picture of Luke sleeping: I didn't realize it at the time I was taking the picture, but I have one very similar of Jacob at about the same age:

Same (June 7-13)

Pics & update from June7-13

With the threat of bad weather several days this week, our schedule was pretty low key. We did manage to hit the gym everyday, Jacob went to his first gymnastics class, and we made a trip to the zoo.

Saturday was Jacob's last T-ball game for the year.

We also had lots of fun at home together. Jacob has been "into" his TAG reader system for the last couple of months and enjoys "reading" by himself. He and Luke have also found a common interest - cars, and love to "play cars" if not together, then alongside each other. No surface in the house is immune to becoming a parking lot or road for cars. Jacob also loves getting to play games with me like Candyland, Memory, Chutes & Ladders, etc. Definitely will add to his collection for his birthday.

We have hit the "same" factor in the house. What one boy has or does, the other has to have or do. I've had to catch myself before doing or giving something to one of the other knowing the other boy will be expecting the same. Fun times. This trend has also included eating arrangements. Luke has been fighting his highchair for a few weeks now, but we've kept him in it. I finally decided to give in this week and he now sits in a booster at the table like Jacob.

Just like convincing Jacob that he really didn't need Pull-Ups at night took some time, we finally convinced him this weekend that he didn't need his bed rails anymore. He had been fighting us taking them away, so we didn't push it. But after having to change his bed twice this week from accidents, I was tired of reaching over the bed rails, so we took them away. He has done great and really hasn't argued. The day we took them down though, he was a little upset and said "I don't want to be 4, I just want to be 3." I guess I have been using the "you don't need this or you shouldn't do that, or you can do this all by yourself you are almost 4" a bit too much...

With Father's Day is just a week away, I had to throw in a couple pictures of the boys with their Daddy.

Here are the rest of the pictures for the week.