the many faces of Bear- 22 month edition

Where's B? He is really good at hiding

"hello Mr. Bush nice to meet you"

babyartgroup.com

Where do I begin with this little boy? At 22 month B is developed  his own opinions and ides of how his life should be. If it were up to him he would eat raisins and cheese all day never get his diaper changed and either play outside or watch Thomas the Train everyday of his life. He would also not have to share with his toys with his brother. Some of these I can kindly accommodate... play outside? ...sure ... watch Thomas?... sometimes ....skip a diaper change...NEVER!! And boy will he let me know that he is not okay with that decision. So yes strong willed would definitely be one of the adjectives I would use to describe him. But it it's not always a battle field at home there are some pretty heartwarming moments too. Like when I sneak up on him spontaneously giving his brother hugs and kisses. Or when he is willing to share he will bring W toys to play with. He has also become Papi's biggest fan. He gets a little sad when he leaves and randomly asks about him throughout the day. And when Papi does come home OH BOY is this kid excited. It is so cute to watch their bond grow like when he gets hurt he makes Papi kiss all his pretend "hurties". He loves testing his strength and trying to pick up any big item that might be  in his way.

 I have officially named us the "train table hoppers" because where ever we go that might have a train table I am 100% sure that we will be spending the majority of the time there regardless of what other things are around. His vocabulary is growing everyday and most of his words and becoming more clear. He can also identify vehicles by name, train, car, truck, bus. Who knows what other fun memories next month will bring. 

The many faces of Wolf - 8 month edition

What can I say about this baby besides he is awesome. He loves giving pictures kisses though not on cue. He spends most of his play time on his belly still and is still working on crawling though I would call him mobile at this time being that he has mastered rolling to things and can also move in circles on his tummy. When he's not rolling he enjoys sitting up and chewing on anything he can get his hands on. He and his brother have officially kept each other up during nap I would walk by only to hear baby jabber and hysterical laughter by most parties. It was much too cute to interrupt so I stood my the door and made a little memory of it. He is starting to stay awake during our walks and outings and it seems like he is trying to figure everyone out. He  takes his time to process people before shooting them a smile if at all. But at home it's  just the opposite always getting so excited when anyone of us walk into the room we are always greeted with a laugh and a big cheeky smile. It is so heartwarming.

Water play

This weather is really making me pretty adventuress with these boys. Last week we went outside to have a little water play. I was a little sad that W missed out on the fun but he was pretty crabby that day and a nap was much needed. I re-purposed our old baby bath since neither of the boys use it now it has just been taking up space in the garage. I thought if fit the bill for a simple water activity. I through down some towels so B wouldn't get so muddy and through some toys in. 

At first we brought out our Playmobile Noah's Arc then a fly swatter. He enjoyed both but nothing beat just plain ol' splashing since it is a "no" during bath time. At first he was a little puzzled at the fact that I said nothing when he first did it. I explained that is was okay out here and he took full advantage! 

Look at that proud face in the last picture. He definitely felt successful about all that splashing.

outdoor babies

smelling/eating the flowers

The warm weather has really enticed us to spend as much time outside as possible. Even a few evenings after dinner have been spent soaking up the last bit of daylight. Just a blanket and a few blocks for W.

These pictures are so far some of my favorites. B smelling or eating flowers is just so him. Always curious and excited to find new things. And W's sweet face is a perfect reflections if his sweet nature and slightly drooly which is also totally him right now.  I am in love. 

Weekend adventure

 Last Saturday was beautiful. And despite husband working on Saturdays I wanted the boys and I to take full advantage of the day. I have to add that I am usually a homebody and going out by myself with the boys always makes me a little anxious, but I am slowly trying to be a bit more brave. So with sunhats and sunblock on we went on an adventure.

First to the Saturday farmers market downtown. It was just about the end of it so there wasn't a whole lot to see but B and I did share and mango lemonade and he got a balloon. We sat and people/dog watched and then decided to set off to our next destination.

Next we went down to the riverfront where I let B have a bit more freedom and explore the park on foot. We walked along the bank path until B got tired and sat on the sidewalk and called it quits. W fell asleep in the stroller and I carried B back to the car. By the end of that it I had some tired babies on my hands and decided to go back home for naps. 

It was just the right amount of time out for us. They came home and fell right asleep and I had just enough time to start dinner before picking up husband from work. It was a great weekend. 

The {Breastfeeding} Initiative

It is really happening! This has been a project that has been a little under wraps for a while. I have partnered with Heidi Helser Photography and we are making a children's Breastfeeding book. Our first photo shoot was yesterday and I am so overwhelmed by the results. We have started a facebook page where we will be documenting our journey of getting independently published. Please LIKE to follow our journey.

backyard adventure

  

Yesterday while W was taking a nap B and I went outside to play. B is becoming quite the brave one and finally decided to go discover every corner of the backyard. Usually he self contains himself on the pavement alone but yesterday he decided that it was his day to explore. He wandered over to the very end of our backyard where we have a couple on giant pine trees not to mention an old stump that he attempted to climb. He fell on his face a few times and got up without despair. He played in the mud and knocked over his ride on toy making big crash sounds. I think this little boy is slowly starting to loose his fear of everything. 

For a long time I questioned myself (surprising I know) because of his apprehension towards everything!  Other parents asked me why he was so scared and all I could respond was "that's just who he is" But I knew pushing him didn't feel right. I knew in my heart the day would come when he wouldn't cling to me with every startling sound or small fall. I had to trust and appreciate all those extra hugs because  he was soon going to be a "big boy" ready to explore the world. Well I think we are slowly getting there.And although I am so excited about seeing him spread his little wings a bit more. To be honest I am a little sad to say that my baby is becoming a "big boy" a little more each day. 

It's a big step for both of us. B exploring and me allowing him to take on a few challenges without me jumping to help him. Ugghhh....It's so hard not to sometimes. 

Dear Baby Bear

May you enjoy every pile of leaves you jump in and every knee scrape that you get. I hope to teach you that this world that our Lord created is beautiful and full of adventure. Have fun.

Love mama,

P.s. If you ever need an extra hug because you've gone too far. I'll try to be only a few steps away. :) 

lots of field trips

As I mom of two pretty young boys I often have very little motivation to leave the house. But ironically that is the only thing that seems to be working for us to keep the day running smoothly. B seems to be getting a bit stir crazy at home and which honestly frazzles me A LOT. So yesterday when B woke up on a the wrong side of the bed my lovely husband was kind enough to recommend I keep the car and "go somewhere instead of going insane" HA! Well he was right and the day went smoothly. The boys had fun and I felt motivated enough to clean and cook as soon as we got home and the boys went down for a nap. 

Sometimes it's good to be spontaneous ( I am trying to be more so). So until teething and emotions level out a bit. My days will be a little more lax and hopefully a lot more fun for all of us. 

quick hello

I don't think I have much to say today besides the fact that I think that this little boy is one of the sweetest in the world. That is all and good day.

banging on pots and pans

Saturday's are the most challenging days of the week for us. Usually by bedtime the house is a mess and I am to the end of my rope.  That day was especially stressful as B a was a bit under the weather. I decided that instead of getting upset I gave them something new to explore and keep them entertained while I cleaned up the living room and the kitchen. Out came a few kitchen items such as wooden spoons, spatulas, whisk, muffin tins.etc. and it worked!B loved banging on all the pots and  pretending to stir food and eat it while W found his new all time favorite toy. A whisk. He could not put it down. It was so great to see them both exploring and by the time they lost interest both rooms were clean and it was time to read a few books before bed. I often forget of the sheer value of exploration of everyday items. I will definitely be pulling out more whisks on tough days :)

Week 3: Butterfly theme

Last weeks theme I decided to make a bit more simple being that is was a double theme week (Easter) and I really wanted something that could be tied into the overall theme of Easter. Butterflies seemed like the perfect merge between our insect curriculum and The Resurrection. 

On Monday I introduced this super cheesy song my MIL introduced me to that fit the bill perfectly. I also introduced this life cycle book. It's in Spanish and I bit too old but the photographs are amazing and straight forward so it wasn't an issue. I took out a few of our butterfly toys for him to play with.

Butterfly on the train track

On Tuesday : Repeat Monday then we made a caterpillar using a popsicle stick and some pom poms.

 On Thursday: (yes Thursday, we took a bit of a break) We painted a coffee filter using watercolors and glued our caterpillar to it.

On Friday during B's nap I wrapped the butterfly in a few paper towels. When he woke up he unwrapped the chrysalis. 

Yay! A butterfly!!!!

butterfly destruction! Trucks, cars, and trains trump anything

Between this and the Resurrection eggs it was more than enough to keep this little guy busy. This week I decided to take it easy and rethink my next step. Have a great weekend.